Time's Design
by Meta-Akira
Summary: A serious problem arises in the near future. When Celebi is sent back to warn someone, Silver happens to be the one to intercept the desperate call. Now it's up to him to stop what he was forewarned before it's too late. SilverxLyra, Rated just in case.
1. Visitor

**(~)  
((NOTE: CHAPTER REVISED))  
(~)**

"Please, you're the only one I can ask!"

The petite, fairy-like Pokémon blinked her large, blue eyes at the human before her.

"I know you two traveled together once. So please, warn someone so this doesn't happen!"

She pondered the situation. It wasn't wise to meddle with time. It was true that she held a small connection with the one in question. Under these grave circumstances, maybe. _Perhaps_…

Perhaps it was possible. Just this once. She glanced away, as if something had caught her gaze. Staring off into the distance, she blinked slowly before returning her crystal stare to the human who awaited her decision with bated breath. At last, she nodded. Turning away, she began to glow, vibrantly but gently. The trees around them responded in kind. A portal opened up, and with one last glance at the human behind her, she spanned the gap and entered the vortex of time, sealing it again behind her.

x~x~x~xBackwardsx~x~x~x

A sigh escaped the redhead as he trudged over the scarce path winding through the sparse grass. The teenager slowed, glancing wearily around him. But he suddenly broke the tranquility with a shout as he stumbled to the ground unexpectedly.

He flipped onto his back, irritation plain on his face as he glared up at the face of his green, sauropod of a starter Pokémon, who was grinning beneath his two yellow antennae.

"What was _that_ for?" Silver asked, trying to sound angry, but it came out more irritated.

Meganium merely snorted and playfully headbutted Silver again as he was getting up, toppling him over into the grass.

"You know, I might just reconsider letting you walk outside your Pokeball, you lousy pansy," Silver muttered as he got up again, dusting off the sleeves of his long jacket. "And I might rethink giving you and the rest of those slackers weekends off."

Meganium snorted again, taking no alarm from his master's growled threat. Despite Silver's sour exterior, he had gotten to be a lot friendlier with his Pokémon, and he rarely mistreated them anymore. Silver would never admit it, but he enjoyed being in their company.

Silver worked them hard, that was true, and he was still often curt with his battling companions, but he had been getting a lot better in past months. On weekends, he'd take time off from the intense training, and they would walk. Just walk, taking time to think, relax, and reenergize. Silver took turns with each of his Pokémon, but it was an understatement to say that he favored walking with his Meganium.

Silver slowed again, looking around at his surroundings. The Ilex Forest at noon was a quiet place. Most of the bug and grass types that resided here hunkered down midday, being more energetic during the morning and nighttime hours. The trees blocked out most of the sun, with only scattered beams penetrating the branches here and there.

Silver blinked as something caught the corner of his eye. The shrine. Not sure what compelled him, he moved towards it, staring at the small structure. He never had taken much notice of it before. All of the previous times he traveled through Ilex, he was too conceited and dismissive of it to spare it more than a glance.  
This time, though. He blinked out of his thoughts when he heard a thump. Meganium had flopped into the shade of the tree next to the shrine, sprawling across its roots. He blinked up at Silver, who again feigned frustration.

"Fine, you pansy. I guess there's no moving on until you've have your nap," he said, reluctantly walking up to the tree, turning and sliding down its trunk until he was sitting with his back against it.

He resignedly checked his PokeGear, which reminded him that it was Sunday. Early tomorrow morning, he'd have to return to his schedule. Silver alternated between training at Dragon's Den and observing trainers fight the Elite Four, on the lookout for new strategies. All the trainers he watched lost without fail. With one exception.

He smirked. No doubt, at the level of experience that she was at, she could take the Four on without a hitch before challenging Lance one more in a climactic battle that got the crowds riled up. He'd learned that she would have a rematch with them on occasion, after accidentally smacking into her at the plateau and losing promptly against her in a proposed warm-up battle. After the both had healed up their teams, she left for her scheduled gauntlet run and he had hidden among the crowds that had come to watch.

It was rather ironic. Initially, Silver's emotions around the girl ranged from dislike to confusion. Despite all his efforts to defeat her, she had continued to best him, time after time. And despite his rudeness, she had always treated him kindly. After some time and several battles had past, he came to respect Lyra and her team and the not-so-crazy notion that befriending a Pokémon could bring out its strongest power.

Not to mention that it was Lyra who became his first friend.

(*(*(_Flashback_)*)*)

"What do you want? Did you come to make fun of me?"

The cinnamon-eyed girl with the memorable hat looked at the redhead in confusion, her enormous, ever-loyal Feraligatr flanking her.

"Silver, what are you talking abou-"

"Well, get it over with then! 'Cause I don't care," Silver lashed out, feeling foolish for his actions. The girl had never made fun of him before. But here he was, caught in the act of spending time and bonding with his Meganium. He was pretty much admitting that all of his previous actions were wrong. He didn't look her in the face. He knew that he deserved someone calling him out on what he was doing. At the very least, he expected a taunting 'I told you so'.

"Silver," she began, frowning slightly. "I wouldn't make fun of you. You know that."

His tensed shoulders relaxed slightly. At least she didn't seem to think of him as an idiot.

"Well, then why are you here?" he asked bluntly, gesturing around at the enormous, water-filled cavern that was Dragon's Den.

"Well, when we met in Mount Moon, you said you were coming here to train," she said brightly. "I think it's great that you're strengthening your bond with your Pokémon."

He blinked, uncertain of how to take her praise. He wasn't used to being complimented.  
"Uh, thanks…"

"So," she continued with her trademark grin. It lightened his mood a little. "Mind if I train here, too?"

"That sounds like an excellent idea. Count us in, too, if you'll pardon our interruption."

The teenagers whirled around at the familiar voice. Two adults had just clambered off of a Gyarados and onto the dock that led to the shrine. The woman was dressed mostly in blue, with a cape, gloves, and unique high-heeled boots. Her long blue hair was pulled back into a high ponytail. The man who had spoken wore mostly black fringed with red. He also wore a cape and his fireball of spiky light red hair stuck up in the back.

"Hi Clair!" Lyra called delightedly, Silver frozen in shock as he stared at the man. "Hi Lance!"

"Lyra," the former Johto Champion responded warmly while his cousin nodded in greeting. He went to shake her hand and pulled the brunette into a brief hug. "You've been doing well?"

"Yes, of course," Lyra laughed cheerfully once he had released her. "Silver and I were just-"

"_You!_" Silver interrupted loudly, pointing at the dragon master. He was vaguely aware of being filled with seething anger, which he believed was connected to his largely pathetic six on one defeat against the man's Dragonite a few months ago. "I may have lost to you before, but that won't happen again! I challenge you!"

"Hm?" Lance looked a little surprised, but also slightly amused. "Oh, yes! I remember you, now. You were the one who was trying so hard to defeat me without trust and compassion towards your Pokémon."

"Hey, Silver's not like that," Lyra interjected defensively. "Not anymore. He's kind towards his Pokémon now."

Silver felt an unexpected pride in Lyra's words, standing a little straighter and with a spark of confidence in his eyes.

"Really? We'll see. I accept your challenge, Silver. But let's make it more interesting," Lance offered, indeed noticing a change in the teenager's posture and demeanor.

"How?" Clair asked, breaking her silence.

"A tag battle," Lance answered his younger cousin with a smile. "Two-on-two."

"What, not up to challenging me by yourself?" Silver asked, crossing his arms.

"Aw, c'mon Silver," his rival said enthusiastically. "It'll be fun!"

He sighed, giving in to her bubbly personality.

"Great," Lance said, clapping his hands together amiably. "All right. Lyra, you'll be on my team."

Silver's head jerked up, feeling indignant.

"That means you're with me," Clair said, stepping forward.

"No way!" The words tumbled defiantly out of his mouth. He felt that anger again. He reached to grab Lyra's shoulder as she was about to walk over towards Lance. She stared back at him over her shoulder, looking nearly as surprised as he felt.

"I'm not going with the crazy costume woman," Silver blurted.  
_"Why you insolent little-!"_

"Stick with me, Lyra. We can beat them both," he stated, jaw set in determination.

"Oh… okay…" Lyra responded slowly, before smiling brightly in agreement.

"Oh, don't mind me," Clair snarled, her eyes flashing dangerously at Silver. "I'm just going to do my utmost to crush you, you little Wurmple!"

"Bring it on," Silver said coolly, feeling confident with Lyra at his side. "Go, Crobat!"

He felt a smirk slide over his face when Lance, Claire, and Lyra gave a startled look at the bat that appeared, flapping his four wings and raring to go.

"But don't Golbat only evolve into Crobat…" Lance started, actually astounded.

"…when they've formed a true bond of friendship and trust with their trainer!" Lyra finished, positively beaming at Silver. He felt that odd sense of pride again.

o0O0o0O0o

It was a spectacular battle. As amazing as it was to battle Lyra, it was exhilarating to battle alongside her. Silver's Crobat and Gengar eventually fell against Lance's Gyarados and Clair's Dragonite, respectively. Clair was following through with her threat. In most of her attacks, she targeted Silver's Pokémon for his insult earlier. With a sigh, he decided the last of his allotted three Pokémon. Meganium appeared in a flash. He knew that it was a bad type match-up, but he didn't particularly care. Lyra glanced at him. Despite only being on her second Pokémon, she commanded her Beedrill to use U-Turn. Lance's powerhouse of a Dragonite hardly suffered, but she flashed Silver a grin as she held up her third Pokeball.

"Let's go, Fang!"

He understood what she was doing now. Her starter and his, their first Pokémon, fighting together to finish the battle.

o0O0o0O0o

"Fang, use Avalanche!"

"Dragonite," Clair countered, "Use Protect!"

With a weary roar, Dragonite obliged, throwing a defensive shield around herself before Fang collided with it in a flurry of ice and snow.

Both pairs of Pokémon, the twin Dragonite and the rivals' starters, were worn out. They were on their last leg. But Silver was sure that if they went all-out on one final attack, they could clinch it. Lyra and Silver spared each other a glance, both thinking the same thing.

Time to end this battle.

On the same breath, they ordered the most powerful move in their Pokémon's arsenals.

"Fang, use Hydro Cannon!" "Meganium, use Frenzy Plant!"

Fang reared back his head, opening his massive gaping jaws. An orb of water swelled between his jaws, glowing blue. With a snarl, he let loose a tremendous jet of water, bigger in diameter than Lyra was tall, shooting with unerring accuracy at Clair's Dragonite, shattering what remained of her Protect and sending the yellow dragon clear over the shrine.

Meganium's whole body seemed to glow green, bugling with all his might. A rumble came from the water, and enormous thick roots studded with sharp spines splashed upwards out of the liquid, having punched holes in the lakebed in their fury to get at their prey. They struck Lance's Dragonite head-on, wrapping around him and sending him crashing down onto the dock.

Both Feraligatr and Meganium were breathing heavily, exhausted from their efforts. If they hadn't knocked out the Dragonite, then they were sitting targets. The Dragonite pair glared at their adversaries, limbs trembling. First Clair's Dragonite's eyes slid closed, head dropping back down. Lance's dragon was made of sterner stuff, still on all fours. He stared up at Meganium and Feraligatr, who stared back. Neither side gave in until finally the yellow beast succumbed and dropped to the ground, admitting defeat.

Silence seemed to echo in the cavern from the sheer enormity of what had just happened. Silver didn't even dare to breathe, convinced that both Dragonite would suddenly spring back up on their feet to finish his and Lyra's Pokémon off. But it didn't happen. Clair looked flabbergasted, mouth agape, while Lance's face was one of more warm surprise. The two dragon-tamers slowly walked over towards their fallen companions to check on their well-being and (in Clair's case) to make sure the defeat wasn't a figment of imagination.  
Clair gave a slightly sour glance in Silver's direction, as she returned her Pokémon. Lance, however, having muttered reassurances to his defeated dragon on how proud he was before returning him, straightened up with an inspired smile.

"Did you see that, Clair?" he asked.

"Oh, I see…" Clair said with an resigned sigh.

"Never have I seen such an intense double battle. You two make a great match!"

Silver blinked, confused by Lance's last statement, but he was even more startled when the former champion walked up to him and stuck out his hand. Silver slowly grasped it with his own, shaking it. Lyra looked awe-struck. Lance stepped back, grinning at them.

"I apologize about what I said earlier. It appears you were right about him, Lyra," he spoke earnestly, catching Silver even more off guard. "Good job to both of you. But now I must be off."

Nodding to the both of them, he turned with a slightly over-dramatic swoop of his cape and walked back over to the edge of the dock.

"I must go, too," Clair added, releasing her Aerodactyl and clambering onto his back. "Good battle, Lyra. And to you, you lousy little smart-mouth."

Lance also took a seat on the Aerodactyl, and with a few wing beats, the two dragon tamers were gone.

Once they were out of sight, Lyra let out a loud whoop, cheering and grinning like there was no tomorrow. Even Silver was feeling happy, and he allowed a small smile to grace his features as his pigtailed partner ran up to hug Fang. Then she went to hug Meganium, who had adored Lyra from day one, despite Silver's scolding. Then she spun around to face the redheaded teenager, breathless.

"You did it, Silver! You and Meganium knocked out Lance's most powerful Pokemon!"

As much as Silver would have liked to take the credit, he reluctantly shook his head. "You helped… a lot."

"Yeah, but your Meganium gave the finishing blow that decided the match!" she said, beaming. It was obvious she wouldn't let his excuses get in the way of the excitement. He sighed, still smiling slightly, turning to check on Meganium. He hadn't gone three steps when Lyra practically tackled him with a hug from behind.

"Lyra! What the heck are you doing?" he spluttered out in surprise, his arms pinned to his sides as he staggered to keep from falling over.

"I'm just proud of my friend, that's all," she chirped back, letting him go.

He glanced back at her, thrown off guard. Did she just say-

"Friend?" he repeated, as if the word was from a foreign language.

"Of course, Silver," she said, tilting her head to one side, smile still in place. "You've been my friend for a while!"

Silver blinked again, before returning the smile- a genuine, unhesitating smile. After a while it dropped into a smirk, but one that no longer was malicious.

"Don't think I've forgotten about my goal of defeating you, though, Lyra. I won't go easy on you!"

She returned the smirk. "What else are friends for?"

(*(*(_End Flashback_)*)*)

Silver stirred suddenly, his neck stiff from sleeping against the trunk of the tree. He blinked the grogginess away, opening his metallic grey eyes to see the unchanged landscape of Ilex Forest. Judging by the angle of the sunbeams, he had slept for couple of hours. But something didn't feel quite right. Something had shifted while he was asleep, but he couldn't place what. He turned his head to see Meganium, still sleeping undisturbed a few feet away. He turned his head to look over at the shrine, and had to bite back a shout of surprise.

A pair of wide blue eyes regarded him from only a few inches away. He toppled over, landing on Meganium, who snorted and jumped, forced out of his sweet dreams. He was about to irately shove Silver back, but stopped short when he saw the cause of his master's reaction.

A Pokémon, only the size of Meganium's head, floated effortlessly on transparent wings. Her tiny, humanoid body was delicate and slender. Two enormous, powder blue eyes, rimmed with black, gazed boldly yet warily out at them from her pale green face.

Silver's mouth worked soundlessly in an effort to make sense of this sudden appearance. Finally, he plunged a hand into his navy bag, fumbling around until he managed to grab a book that listed the Pokemon of the Kanto and Johto regions. Not being in the possession of a Pokedex, he had to do things the more… traditional way.

Boredom had made him flip through this book many times before; skimming the tidbits the book had to offer about Pokémon, hunting for powerful additions to his team. In the very back were listed the rare, obscure, and mythical beings thought to inhabit the areas. He quickly scanned the pages until his eyes came to rest on a similar rendering of the Pokemon in the book. His eyes widened, and he looked up at the Time Travel Pokémon incredulously.

"Celebi."

**(~)**  
**Updated AN:**  
**Alrighty then. Hard to believe this was first written a bit less than three years ago, huh?**  
**It took me longer than I promised, but as you can see, I am working to, er, refurbish these older chapters. Not rewriting, of course. But I am patching them up, freshening up some wording, fixing some mistakes, replacing a couple of paragraphs that just don't sit well with me anymore.**

**With any luck, this will ease me back into writing, and I'll be able to bring this story its well-deserved final chapters.**  
**Thank you to all who have cheered me on the past three years!**

**~Meta-Akira**


	2. Timetravel

**(~)**

**((NOTE: CHAPTER REVISED))**

**(~)**

A Pokémon that was said to be as elusive as Mew, a time traveling guardian who watched the Ilex Forest over the span of hundreds of generations, was believed by many to only be a child's fantastical bedtime story, a mere fairytale.  
Whether or not that was the case, why was she currently hovering in front of a dumbstruck Silver, staring at him intently?

Celebi hummed. If Silver had been less stunned by the sudden appearance of an extremely rare, powerful Legendary Pokémon, he supposed he would have attempted to capture it. But as it was, he just sat there, incoherent stammering falling from his mouth.  
Again she hummed, and it pierced Silver's daze enough to notice an urgent sound to it. Meganium got to his feet slowly, as did his trainer, and the sauropod took notice of the importance of the noise.

"What, is someone after you or something?" Silver asked in confusion, finally finding his tongue.

Celebi shook her head and darted forwards, grabbing Silver's sleeve in her own tiny grip. Silver followed the delicate pull, still utterly nonplussed. Meganium trailed cautiously.  
Celebi could use her own powers to travel through time by herself. But for this, she needed the shrine to augment her powers. Despite being part-psychic, she sadly didn't possess great telepathic power. Someone else had to do the explaining for her.

Silver half-believed that this was some sort of dream. Out of curiosity over where this dream would lead, he decided to humor the pixie.  
"Alright, there's the shrine. Uh, do you want me to make some sort of offering or something?"

Celebi didn't respond, but she closed her eyes slowly.

"What are- !" Silver interrupted his own question with a sound of exclamation. Celebi had begun to glow with a soft green light. To make things even more alarming, the shrine glowed brilliantly, as well as the trees. It gave the scene strange, surreal feel, which further made Silver doubt the reality of it. Yet… something inside him told him this _was_ happening, here and now. Meganium balked, wide-eyed and confused. There was an arcane feel to it, the grass-type could feel it in his bones, and he wanted no part of the strange power.  
Celebi's eyes opened, shining brilliantly blue. She placed one delicate, three-fingered hand on the illuminated shine, the other extended out towards Silver, who she stared at, waiting for his reaction.

He gazed at the tiny hand that was clearly summoning him. He glanced back at Meganium, for a moment, who was retreating, head low, away from the shrine. Before he could call out to his Pokémon, his hand had reached out to touch Celebi's, almost without his will.

It was as though a fierce gale had kicked up the moment he had connected with the small Legendary. The glowing intensified, all different colors, surrounding him and Celebi in a bubble of swirling hues. It was so bright that he swore loudly and threw his unoccupied arm over his eyes. He felt like he was being dragged upwards while being anchored to the ground, and there was a spinning sensation in the pit of his stomach.

Then it was gone as suddenly as it had come. He slowly became aware that he was still standing up, with his arm still over his face, his right hand still in the possession of the mythical Pokémon. The only thing that was different was that Silver was now entirely drenched in sweat, his heart hammering and his breath ragged. He felt vaguely sick, like he was getting over a bad case of vertigo.

"Wh-what… what the _hell _just happened?" he panted, dropping his arm to glare at Celebi. She merely released his sweaty hand, which he promptly dragged through his hair in exasperation. Glancing around, the forest looked as if it was back to normal. No blinding swirl of colors. No glowing. No Meganium.

Silver did a double-take, but Meganium was nowhere to be found. He spun back to face Celebi, about to angrily demand some sort of explanation, but she just continued to stare at him solemnly.

And the weight of what happened suddenly blindsided him.

He swore, kicking the ground and muttering under his breath as the Time Traveler Pokémon watched him digest the news shakily. Well, he was taking it better than expected.

Once Silver managed to be able to breathe evenly, he glowered at Celebi, "Okay… so… where- o-or _when_ are we?"  
Celebi didn't respond, instead starting to float away in the direction of Azalea. Grumbling, he stuffed his hands into his pockets and followed after.

Not too long afterwards, they were out of the Ilex Forest, and the familiarity of the small town calmed Silver slightly. After all, Azalea Town didn't look all too different from when he and Meganium had passed through. The Slowpoke still wandered the town aimlessly and languorously. All the buildings looked the same. But something different did catch his attention. The people were usually cheerful- sometimes annoyingly so- but any he glimpsed walking around looked rather grim.

Celebi led him behind a cluster of trees, making for a nearby chapel surrounded with flowers gently bobbing in a light breeze. Silver frowned at it. He vaguely recalled that Lyra usually tried to get here once a week. He'd rarely been anything one could call religious. He had distant memories of his mother trying to instill it in him when he was very young, before she died. But his _father__ did his best to crush it out of him._

His attention was regained by Celebi, who pointed to something half-hidden behind the humble church. He shifted to the right, peering out from the trees, and glimpsed lines of marble tombstones. A cemetery? Why would Celebi wish to show him that? He glanced at the Pokémon, who nodded and continued to point.

x~x~x~xSwitch POVx~x~x~x

I sighed, feeling _fragile__._ I felt empty and hollow, kneeling at the edge of the fresh grave, looking at the marble tombstone. I held a white hat in my hands, a box sitting in front of me. It wasn't overflowing with items. Just a few special things that had been entrusted to me. I felt like I didn't deserve them. But the others at the funeral had insisted I take them.

_The funeral._ Those two words were like an impenetrable wall of thorns. Some of the people said the ceremony had been beautiful. My breathing hitched slightly. Beautiful? How could something like that be beautiful? No matter how many flowers, or how elegant the eulogy, nothing could twist this truth to make it beautiful.

I started as a drop of water fell with a _plop_ inside the box. Instinctively, I looked up. It was a clear, sunny day. Not a cloud in the sky. I frowned as another tear coursed down my cheek, followed by others. Couldn't it at least rain on a horrible day like this? I closed my eyes in an effort to stop crying, but a strangled sob escaped my throat, and the tears kept coming.

I felt something nudge my shoulder. Eyes snapping open, I looked to see a Feraligatr watching me, reflecting my pain and sorrow. He sat slumped on all fours, tail dragging and head drooped low. He must have let himself loose from his ball, somehow aware of where we were and how I was feeling.

Slowly, I rested my hand on his head.

"We'll pull through this Fang," I murmured, unable to believe my own words. "Somehow."

He groaned sadly. Fruitlessly attempting to distract myself as I had for the past week, I half-heartedly shifted the objects in the box. I blinked as my fingers brushed a book. I pulled it out, a blue, thin book stamped with the word "Journal" in the front.

Feeling numb, I opened it at random and started thumbing through the pages, glancing at the entries now and then. My eyes came to rest on one particular entry, one headed by a sketch. Bemused, I looked closer and read the words printed neatly beneath the drawing. I could hardly believe what I was reading as my eyes widened.

"This could change everything," I whispered, breaths coming faster as an idea formed. Fang looked at me in sad confusion as I stood up, unintentionally spilling the contents of the box and dropping the journal face-down next to hat on the churned earth.

"C'mon, Fang," I said urgently, summoning the enormous blue reptile to his feet.

There was something I needed to do in the Ilex Forest.

x~x~x~xSwitch Backx~x~x~x

Silver had been making his way around the cemetery that Celebi had pointed out, careful to keep to the trees. Once, when he had tried to step out of their cover, Celebi pulled him back with amazing strength for a Pokémon so small, making scolding noises. He figured Celebi wanted them to stay out of sight. Which upon reflection did make some sort of sense, time travel-wise.

Once he had skirted the perimeter of trees around the chapel, he had found himself on the edge of the quiet cemetery. He thought he had glimpsed someone leaving in a hurry, but whoever it was had turned the corner of the church, and he hadn't seen the person properly.

Now that Celebi was sure no one was around or heading in this direction, she gave Silver a gentle shove. He stumbled out in the open, shooting a quick glower back at the nymph-like creature. But his flare of anger was lost in and unnerved feeling of curiosity. Why had Celebi brought him here? He hated graveyards. They gave him the creeps. He had only ever been in one once before, for his mother's funeral when he was six. The bad memories and deep unease had caused him to avoid them for the following twelve years of his life.

Celebi was hovering over his left shoulder, guiding him to their destination with a gentle push. He felt discomfort heightening in him with every step. Then, he noticed a new grave in the distance. So new that the upturned dirt hadn't even dried out in the sunlight. There was a splash of white against the ground that also grabbed his attention.

He spared a questioning glance at Celebi, who nodded and pointed to the grave, urging him on.

He moved forward silently, feeling horribly as if he was in a grim parody of that old Christmas tale with the spirits. He was the Scrooge, reluctantly walking towards a grave that would confirm the growing fears within himself, urged on by a supernatural being who knew more than he did.

He felt a small shock course through him when he had gotten nearer. He recognized Lyra's hat lying abandoned on the ground. Had she just visited here? Was she the one he'd glimpsed leaving?

He saw, a short distance from the hat, a box of items and a journal, lying face-down in the dirt. His nerve was beginning to fail him. His heart pounded quickly in his chest. Celebi watched in sympathy as Silver managed to brace himself enough to look at the name on the tombstone.

She hummed in alarm when she saw his knees give out as he fell to the ground with a gasp.

**(~)**

**Cliff-hangers galore, but those of you rereading this story already know what's to come. Heh.**

**Also, changed it so that Meganium was left behind rather than returned to his pokeball. I thought it might make for a slightly more dramatic piece of the story.**

**The third chapter will be renovated soon, which is one that I've been meaning to patch up for quite some time. Thanks for reading!**

**~Meta-Akira**

**(~)**


	3. Continuum

**(~)**

**((NOTICE: THIS CHAPTER HAS BEEN REVISED 7/22/2013**  
**Also, I am leaving the original Notes as they are.))  
Here's part 3! Yay! Hopefully, I can keep going at this pace.**

**Thanks to xxDaxelnaraxx and Neurotic Writer for their encouragements!**

**I do not own the characters of HG and SS. I just own versions of the game. As always, please read, enjoy and review!  
(~)**

Silver's world seemed to spiral endlessly around him as he stared, horribly transfixed by the tombstone in front of him. His knees had buckled, unable to support him when he had garnered enough nerve to glance at the name. It couldn't be. This couldn't be happening.

_Please be a dream. Oh God, please let this all be just a nightmare!_

Face pale and hands shaking, he couldn't believe the amount of fear that was pulsing through him. He felt a feather-light touch on his shoulder and he turned his head to lock gazes with Celebi. The Legendary did nothing but stare sadly at him in sympathy.

He looked back at the name etched in stone.

_No… Please… no…_

Hands trembling uncontrollably, he reached for the discarded marshmallow hat. It was missing its red bow. He clung to it, hugging it close, as if it were a lifeline that kept him from being swept away.

"Lyra… _why?_"

_Resting here is__  
__Lyra Soul_

_Beloved Daughter, Trainer, and Champion of Johto.__  
__Lest she and her accomplishments never decay from memory._  
"_Though the body lies here, the Soul has returned home."_

Beneath the epitaph, a small, elegant harp-like object was carved- a lyre. The ancient Grecian instrument must have been Lyra's namesake.

He wasn't sure whether or not he was surprised by the sting of tears in his eyes. He could hardly remember the last time he had cried real tears. Vague memories of his mother's funeral floated briefly through his head. What happened in this world that made him lose his closest friend?

His body felt numb, but his mind was alive with pain. He swallowed hard, trying his utmost to keep the swell of tears from falling. Slowly, he addressed the Time Traveler, but was unable to look away from the snow-white stone.

"How did this happen?" he whispered miserably. Celebi sighed sadly, unable to answer his desperate question. His grief made him snap at the creature.

"_Dammit,_ Celebi! Why did you bring me here? _Why_ did you show me this? To taunt me about something I can't stop? I don't deserve this! And Lyra sure as hell doesn't deserve to die!"

He found that he couldn't continue with his tirade, as his anger left as swiftly as it had come. Silence blanketed the cemetery like grim shroud. He observed the stone, and noticed that the year of death was only one year ahead of his time. He slowly reached out a hand and ran his thumb over the small lyre carved into the stone.

"She was only seventeen," he said, his voice breaking.

He slumped, defeated, in front of the grave. However, his grieving was interrupted by Celebi, who again began to hum. She darted forward, noticing small book that was lying face-down in the dirt. She looked it over curiously before tugging on Silver's sleeve.

"A journal. Lyra's journal?" He asked, throat still constricted.  
Celebi nodded, holding open the page to reveal a sketch of the little pixie. It had been done in all green pen, except for the eyes, which had been colored blue. Behind the sketch of Celebi, a shrine had been penned in, drawn to give it a glowing appearance. Celebi pointed to the drawing of the shrine, then waved one hand towards the place he had glimpsed someone leaving, then to the tombstone and finally pointed to Silver. Struggling to make sense of this non-verbal language, Silver tried to fit each piece in.

"Okay, slow down," he said, trying to fit it together. "Lyra met you before, and she drew this, is that right?"  
The small Legendary nodded quickly, urging him on.  
"And this happens in the future, so… someone found her journal…? And they…"

The pieces were coming together as he continued to think. Celebi's eyes were wider than his as things started to connect in his mind. She continued to gesture back and forth.

"They went to find you… to warn someone… to stop this from happening?"  
Celebi cried out in affirmation, grabbing his sleeve and pulling him to his feet.

"But how am I supposed to stop this? I don't know anything about it!"  
Celebi again pointed to the corner of the cemetery where the mysterious stranger had left.

"That person is… what?" Silver suddenly understood. "They're heading to the shrine!"

Celebi hummed.  
"Let's get back there!"

x~x~x~xSwitch POVx~x~x~x

I ran, my feet pounding against the hard earth of the forest path. I tried my hardest to remember the way. Fang the Feraligatr rumbled after me, the Mystic Water that Lyra gave him bouncing on the thin cord around his neck.

It would work._  
__It had to work._

I had no idea what would happen to me if it did, but I didn't care.  
I almost cried in relief when I saw the shrine ahead. Fang growled, also spotting the shrine. I had the feeling he was getting an idea of what I had planned.  
I came to a complete stop before the humble shrine, trying to catch my breath.

_But how to summon Celebi?_

I had no mystical item that would draw Celebi to this time and place. But I had to try something. Anything that could possibly bring Celebi here. Something that might have some significance. Something connected to Lyra, perhaps?  
I turned to look at Fang. Aside from the Mystic Water dangling from his neck, he had a bright red ribbon tied around his arm- a memento taken from Lyra's hat. Kneeling down, I fiddled with the knot. Fang didn't object, understanding that what I was doing was important.

Glancing tenderly at the ribbon in my hand, I stood and placed it upon the shrine.

"Celebi. I need to speak to you. Please," I spoke quietly, with as much sincerity and urgency in my voice as I could muster.

o0O0o0O0o

I stayed there for a good half an hour, _willing_ the Time Traveler to appear. I'd remain here for days, if I needed to. Finally, to my utter astonishment, I noticed the trees beginning to glow.  
A portal of bright swirling light appeared over the shrine, and a tiny figure identical to the sketch in the journal floated out. The portal disappeared, and the glowing faded.  
Celebi blinked her wide, sky-blue eyes, confused as to what had compelled her to come here. Her eyes found mine, and she cocked her head to one side. Her eyes continued to stray, landing on the red strip that lay on her shrine.

With a curious sound, the Pokémon flew over and picked up the ribbon with her tiny hands. It felt familiar, as if it was connected to someone she had known. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the material, and it glowed with Psychic power. The creature's eyes opened again, with recognition. She looked at me again and awaited an explanation.

"Celebi, I came here to ask for your help. Lyra's dead. She's been killed."  
Shock crossed the nymph-like Pokémon's face.

"With your help, I'm sure it can be undone."  
Celebi blinked again. She hummed, sounding uncertain. She slowly shook her head. She couldn't control time, only Dialga could. She could only travel through it, and she felt uneasy about messing with time's design.  
She gave me the ribbon regretfully and turned to leave.

"Celebi, please!" I cried out, sounding desperate. She paused, floating, and looked sadly back at me.

"Just hear me out. You and Lyra shared a connection of some sort. You took her back in time once to help her understand a friend of hers. I only want her life to be saved. Besides," I said, my eyes flashing. "Not only is her life at stake. A lot are in danger right now. Something has come up that threatens the well-being of many humans and Pokémon. And I'm sure they'll target you, too. Especially you, since your powers can alter the timeline. Please!"

x~x~x~xSwitch Backx~x~x~x

Silver was trying to get to the shrine as quickly and silently as possible, Lyra's hat tightly clenched in one hand. Celebi led the way, but Silver noticed she looked slightly worn out.  
Trees rushed by as Silver ran down the familiar trail. He was about to continue, when Celebi suddenly yanked on the collar of his shirt.  
"Why did you-?" Celebi covered his mouth before he could sputter out more of his question. He rubbed his throat, scowling that Celebi had nearly choked him.

"Celebi, please!" A frantic cry yelled out suddenly.

Silver whipped around in alarm, looking to who had spotted him and the Time Traveler. But Celebi shook her head, motioning towards a clearing just ahead, where the eerily familiar voice had come from.  
Silver nodded silently in understanding, burying his hands in his jacket pockets, stealthily stalking after Celebi.

"Please, you're the only one I can ask!"

Celebi noiselessly took her place in a spot partially hidden by low branches, and Silver peered through the leaves to see someone in the clearing- he couldn't see him clearly, as he was obstructed by the shrine- and a Feraligatr.

_Fang? What was he doing there?_ Silver wondered with a frown. He could easily pick out Lyra's beloved starter, even among a thousand others.

The person in the clearing was conversing with another Celebi. No, wait, it was the same Celebi, before she was sent back to get Silver…

"I know you two traveled together once," the person said, voice cracking frantically. "So please, warn someone so this doesn't happen!"

As the person paused to see the Pokémon's reaction, past-Celebi visibly appeared to be thinking. At one point, she looked away from the person with the familiar voice. Her eyes drifted onto Silver and present-Celebi, standing in the cover of a tree. Silver's back stiffened as the familiar blue eyes lingered on him.

Past-Celebi's eyes widened slightly in surprise, but not much. Silver glanced sidelong at present-Celebi. She smiled slightly, nodding to herself.

The two Celebi stared at each other for a long time, as though somehow communicating between each other. Silver briefly wondered if Celebi often encountered future and past selves on her travels. Neither of them appeared shaken by the other's presence, so he supposed it must happen every now and then.  
Finally, past-Celebi blinked and broke the stare. She looked back at person she floated in front of, and Silver could see her nod.

Silver heard a gasp of gratefulness.  
And suddenly, Silver's vision was filled with bright light. Past-Celebi was glowing, as were the trees and shrine, in the same manner that had brought him rather roughly to this time. The forest was full of surreal light, and a swirling portal appeared above the shrine. Past-Celebi took one glance behind her before going through.

Silver, in his curiosity, had leaned forwards to watch the proceedings. He took a half-step forward out of his hiding place, and was punished by the sound of a dry twig snapping under his foot.

He cursed under his breath as the person in the clearing whirled towards the sound, and Silver froze when he clearly saw the person, looking him in the eyes.

_No way…_

x~x~x~xSwitch POVx~x~x~x

"I know you two traveled together once," I said, voice cracking uncontrollably. "So please, warn someone so this doesn't happen!"

_Someone… Anyone…_

She sat still in the air, thinking. I let her think. If I pushed her too much, she might refuse.  
She looked away, and I badly hoped she wasn't deciding to leave right then and there. She stared off somewhere, and I waited with bated breath as a few minutes passed. She looked like she was debating with herself over the enormity of what I was asking. I nervously awaited her decision as she looked back at me. Slowly, she nodded.

I almost collapsed to the ground, gasping with relief. I couldn't even manage to sputter out a thank you. Fang sat behind me, daring to look hopeful again.

Celebi hummed, and began to glow softly green. I watched, in amazement, as the forest glowed for the second time, and once again the portal was summoned. Celebi started towards it, only turning to lock eyes with me one last time in farewell. My eyes had a film of tears on them.

I gripped the ribbon tightly, praying with all my being that it would work._  
__Lyra, I'll save you yet. I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. I wasn't there for you when you needed me. Forgive me. But Celebi is going to help me save you. And you will be alive. No matter what, I know that I-_

A snapping twig ripped through my thoughts like a gunshot. I was at once filled with dread and fear. What if… _they_ had overheard? I whipped around, and Fang snarled. There was such a vicious look in his yellow eyes that even I was a bit alarmed. No doubt, if we did come upon _them_, Fang would give no mercy. He had suffered the most, watching helplessly as his trainer's life was ended.

I scanned the surrounding trees quickly, fists clenched, until I finally spotted someone looking fearfully my way. I stopped, dumbstruck, as the redhead stared at me. Mercury eyes met mercury eyes.

I felt my pulse in my ears as I watched my reflection look back at me.

**(~)  
Boom! Twist! I hope it wasn't _too_ obvious. And I hope that this story is good so far!  
Oh, and Fang the Feraligatr wants you to review, criticize, _anything.__  
_It would be wise to listen to a seven-foot-tall blue bipedal reptilian carnivore.**

**Till next time! See ya! ~Meta-Akira  
(~)**


	4. Explanation

**(~)**  
**((NOTICE: THIS CHAPTER HAS BEEN REVISED 9/13/2013))  
To elaborate on last chapter, present-Celebi was the one with the Silver this story follows. I know that they are in the future, but the Celebi who had been summoned by future-Silver was present-Celebi in _her_ past. Therefore, she is known as past-Celebi, not future-Celebi.  
Sorry if I made anyone's head hurt.  
For convenience, I'll refer to _our_ Silver as just Silver, and his future self as future-Silver or older-Silver.**

**Big thanks for the encouraging reviews from doggiefan, YukinaTheSoulReaper, and candyXkyo! ^^**

**I hope you all enjoy this next chapter! Read, enjoy, and review!**

**I don't own the characters of HG and SS.  
(~)**

Silver couldn't explain what he felt when his future self stared him in the eye. Bewilderment, shock, and incredulity were the main emotions running rampant. Future-Silver, also looking fairly startled, glanced beyond him and saw Celebi hovering in place. With that, the disbelief in his face eased. Future-Silver crossed his arms, his face emotionless except for a hint of something that Silver couldn't identify. Fang flanked the older counterpart, eyeing Silver with a mix of curiosity and confusion.

"So," future-Silver broke the awkward silence first. He was speaking to Celebi, though. "You took my words to heart, did you?"

Celebi nodded eagerly.

"I didn't think that you would go and drag me from wherever I'd been to come and meet myself, though," he continued with a vague wave of his hand.

Silver- present-Silver, that is, closed his eyes firmly for a few seconds and opened them again, wondering for the hundredth time if this wasn't just some wild nightmare. Future-Silver was regarding him steadily.

"What?" he snapped at the older version, sounding irritable. It was his default setting whenever something unsettled him. And this, right now, made unsettled seem like quite the understatement.

"I'm just taking in the irony," his future self said with an indifferent shrug. "What are the chances of Celebi being sent for help and coming back with none other than me?"

Silver felt anger begin to bubble just beneath the surface. Was this guy really not taking him seriously right now?

"When you're done scoffing over there, would you mind telling me what the hell is going on?" Silver asked, unable to keep a check on his temper.

Future-Silver crossed his arms, still watching him. "Why don't you tell me?"

Silver tensed, voice rising to a yell, "What's _that_ supposed to mean? This is _your_ time. Not mine!"

Future-Silver sighed, almost sounding bored with the whole ordeal. It grated on Silver's nerves.

"So how are you liking your future so far, little me?" he asked sardonically.

"Oh get over yourself! And don't change the subject!"

"You gonna answer my question or not?"

Grinding his teeth at being needled, he spat in fury, "Are YOU gonna get serious and answer MY questions? Or are you enjoying yourself right now?"

The older Silver frowned, tensing up his shoulders and throwing his other self a glare to match the one already gracing his younger features. Silver felt like he was seeing red, and snapped before his future self could throw another scathing remark his way.  
"This future is screwed up! It's a living hell, and you know, it's probably your fault!"

Fang growled in warning as the elder counterpart's eyes flashed with anger. Yet, under the surge of rage, there was an undeniable torrent of guilt, as easily read as a book. The self's shoulders sagged unexpectedly, as the spark of his temper rushed out of him.

"There's more truth in that statement than you know," future-Silver said distantly, dropping his eyes to the forest floor.

"So it _is_ your fault that Lyra's… that she… I-It's your fault!" Silver accused.

Future-Silver sighed again- longer, heavier, sadder- and glanced at Celebi. "You caught the both of us at a bad time, you know. I'm still recovering from your first appearance, and he," he jerked a thumb at his younger form, "obviously still has some issues to work out."

Silver's fists were balled up and his jaw was tightly clenched. He wanted to blame someone for this mess. Anyone. And this arrogant jackass would have to do. He opened his mouth, about to reply, but was beaten to it.

"Yes," future-Silver said quietly, uncrossing his arms and sticking his hands in his pockets. He looked down at the ground again, ashamed. "It probably was my fault that Lyra… died…"

Silver saw a racking shudder pass through his older self before they locked eyes again. Despite looking so much alike, future-Silver looked subtly different. He was taller by an inch or so. His hair was slightly longer, and looked rather bedraggled and limp. But future-Silver also looked gaunt and incredibly tired. His metallic eyes had lost the flame behind them.

"But remember that your fault and mine are one in the same," future-Silver said slowly.

Silver froze up, his voice catching on a lump that had suddenly lodged in his throat. His counterpart observed his reaction before continuing.

"Remember that if I had not sent Celebi back in the first place, the same thing would have played out for you. The blame would have fallen squarely onto your shoulders."

Silver found he was incapable of keeping eye contact with his older self any longer. This time, he was the one to stare at the ground, unable to defend against such a piercing argument.

"So, I'm guessing you want an explanation," future-Silver said flatly, straightening up again.

Silver nodded at the ground wordlessly.

"Well, to start things off bluntly," future-Silver's eyes were a mixture of anger and deep regret, "Lyra was murdered."

x~x~x~xFuture-Silver's POVx~x~x~x

"Well, let's see. I guess this all started quite a few months ago.

Lyra had told her mother that she would be doing some special training by herself for a while. She had gone off with Fang, to strengthen their bond. I'm not exactly sure what she did or where she went, but she would check in every now and then with a phone call.

She has this way with training, as I'm sure you know by now. It showed the most with Fang, of course. Every time she would decide to resurface from whatever Godforsaken cave, mountain, island that she had chosen, she would stick around for a day or two. And then she would slip away again.

Every time she would have a rematch with someone, especially me, in those rare times that she showed up again, she would completely thrash my team. She was on a wavelength with her Pokémon that I didn't even know could exist.

She didn't even need to speak a word, sometimes. It was like she and her Pokémon could just… feel what to do, you know?

I think I asked her once- after she decimated my entire team with her deity for a Feraligatr –how she had been able to do that. You know Lyra, she just gave me that cheerful little grin and asked what I was talking about."

_His shoulders slumped dejectedly in the middle of the explanation. He wouldn't be on the receiving end of that smile ever again, and it hurt. He did his best to push it out of his mind and continue before his younger self could notice._

"Uh… Anyways, the cycle would go on like that. Some unspecified schedule of hers. Sometimes she would just smack into me while I was walking during the weekends. And we would battle- I always insisted on seeing if I was closer to matching her. However, despite my training, I was falling behind. Then, after my inevitable loss, we would talk for a while. And then she would leave, disappearing for another few days.

It was as though if I expected her to appear, she wouldn't. Once my guard was down, there she was, smiling and saying how it was such a surprise to have bumped into me.

Then, there was this one time that sticks out more than all the others. For once, I was the one who discovered her, rather than the other way around. I'd been walking through Union Cave and noticed her white hat.

I wanted to get back at her for all those times when she had appeared out of nowhere, startling me. She had been sitting by one of the subterranean lakes, completely quiet and lost in thought."

_A part of him squirmed in guilt as he spoke. But how was he supposed to have known? How could he have ever …?_

"She seemed to be off in a daydream. So I snuck up behind her and grabbed her shoulders.

She let out an ear-piercing scream, louder and more terrified than I thought expected. Next thing I knew, I'd been tackled and my arms pinned down, and there was a three-hundred pound blue alligator towering over me, about to rip my throat out.

She had stood frozen until Fang recognized me. It sort of snapped her out of her trance, and she called him off. But she was pale. So, so pale.

That's when she yelled at me. Lyra had never snapped at me before, and here she was, chewing me out with more anger than I thought possible for her to contain."

_He paused again. 'I really deserved that. After what she must have gone through.'_ _Forcing himself to clear a partially obstructed throat, he plowed on._

"I was in shock. I stood there, mouth hanging open like an idiot, waiting for her to stop her conniption. She came closer to me, raised her hand as if she was about to slap me across the face. But before she could…

Something in her broke.

She looked really shaken, as if she just realized what she had been doing. She started to cry. Not the noisy, sniffling kind of crying. Just the tears. She apologized over and over, very quietly. She glanced at me once and ran off.

She looked so scared."

_'Why, why, why hadn't I gone after her?'_

"I didn't see Lyra after that. I kept telling myself excuses. 'She must have been going through a rough patch in her training at that point,' I thought. Or 'those previous encounters between training had just been coincidental, and the reason I don't see her is because she's obviously training in a different area'."

_'I knew that hadn't been it. It was my fault…'_

"My schedule went on as usual. I felt a little worried about Lyra, but idiot me, I told myself it wasn't any of my business what she got up to. I came up with more excuses.

Maybe she was doing more extensive training farther away.

Maybe she was visiting her mother.

Maybe she was taking a break.

Maybe she had gone on a vacation.

Maybe she left for a different region.

There wasn't any 'maybe' about it, though. I knew something was up. But I had to play the idiot.

Only a few weeks ago, I got a call from Lyra's friend, Ethan Gold. You ever meet him before? We had never been friends. He had seemed more obnoxious than…"

'_No,' he thought, pausing again. 'I can't insult her, even if I don't mean it.'_

"A-Anyways… I was surprised. We had only been acquaintances, and I never wanted to exactly befriend the guy.

He called, sounding frantic. Said Lyra's mom found my number while she had been looking through Lyra's room. He told me that Lyra hadn't called for a long time.

That was unusual. Despite her irregular schedule, she'd always try to contact her mother every other day. Lyra's mother put if off for about five days, thinking that it had just slipped Lyra's mind. When it got to be a week, she was extremely worried; sending calls to the Gym Leaders, to the Elite Four, anyone. She even started to look up the numbers of Pokémon Centers to see whether Lyra had checked in recently to heal her Pokémon. All came up with the same, negative answer.

Eventually, Ethan called me, thinking that maybe I had seen you lately.

I told him that I would start searching myself.

So I went from place to place. Anywhere I could imagine someone training. I even asked that one Gym Leader of Viridian- Blue –to contact Red on Mount Silver, see if he had seen her. He hadn't. Not for a while.

For another week, I continued to fly on Crobat to try to figure out where to look next. Normally, I'd say she could take care of herself, but if you saw her in Union Cave the way she was, then you would be worried out of your mind, too.

I went so many places that they became a blur to me. Then, finally, I made progress. I was scouring the Johto region near Ecruteak, and I went into Mount Mortar. I never thought there had been anything of interest there. But I was getting desperate.

At first, I was sure there was nothing in there. Not that I could hear anything over the huge waterfall.

But then, I heard a roar, just able to make itself heard over the sound of the water. I had to check. A-as far as I knew, nothing lived in Mount Mortar that could make that kind of a sound."

_His shoulders had started shaking, the tremors spreading down to his hands. Fang nudged him gently to urge him on. His younger self watched him with fear in his eyes._

"After looking through countless caves, islands, and mountains. Finally, there in Mount Mortar, I…"

_His voice was weakening, trembling, stumbling, thick with tears that had yet to fall._

"I… I f-found her.

Fang was there, guarding her, even though he was almost as bloodied up as she was, bellowing as loudly as he possibly could.

He-he heard me coming, and tried to attack me again. But his spirit seemed broken. After a few moments, he recognized me and sort of… collapsed.

He led me over to h-her.

God, it was the most terrible thing I'd ever… _ever_… seen in my-my life.

She was lying on the ground in an unnatural way… crumpled up beside a boulder. She was c-covered in deep cuts and… huge br-bruises.

Even though I had a feeling that it was too late, I tried to get a pulse going. _Dammit_ I tried so damn hard. I refused to give up for an hour. B-but… nothing happened. I-I would have kept going, but even Fang had g-given up. So, I-I picked up her… body… and carried her out.

…

She was so cold.

I called the Gym Leader of Ecruteak, Morty… Told him it was an emergency. Something had… had happened to her. He rushed to meet me outside of the cave and brought us to the Pokémon Center.

Then…"

_He closed his eyes for a long moment, breathing deeply past the snags in his throat._

"Then I called Lyra's mother. I told her that I had finally found her, but she wouldn't be going back home… anymore…"

x~x~x~Regular POVx~x~x~x

Silver let out a shaky breath he'd been holding as his future-counterpart ended the horrible retelling. He had so many questions whirling through his head. Possibly more than before future-Silver had started the story. The most pressing one always was: _why?_

"So… wh-why is Fang with you… or me?"

It wasn't exactly the most important question, but he couldn't bring himself to ask _that._ Not yet.

Future-Silver blinked and exhaled. The story was over. The worst of the relived memories had passed for the time being. He proceeded with a flat, but fairly steady voice.

"He was left without a master," he said, placing a hand on Fang's head. "For the next few days, he wandered around, dazed and confused. He wasn't sure what to do or where to go, so he followed me. Despite being a rival of Lyra's from the beginning, he saw me -you- as a connection to her. I think he felt that you were the closest to her. Lyra trusted you, so he decided to as well. Eventually, he took a permanent spot on my team. Though I won't ever dare to think that I ever will become his master, he and I have gotten to be… friends."

Fang sighed softly mournfully, laying his massive head down onto his thick forelegs.

"We help each other through the hurt."

"Who did this?" Silver's voice rang out sharply, finally voicing the question that he dreaded. He felt white-hot rage inside of him, but this time, none of it was directed towards his time-counterpart. All was focused towards the ones who did this. "_Why_ did they do this?"

"_Them,_" future-Silver snarled softly. His quiet tone belied the wrath that burned even hotter than that of his other self."The boulder that I found her near was crudely slashed. It was new, so I am sure that it has to have some connection. Carved deep and jagged in the boulder were two initials: RP. I'm sure that whoever did this is out for either recognition or revenge. And they are dangerous if they managed to murder Lyra, a powerful champion."

Silver ground his teeth. RP… Rocket immediately sprung to his mind. But he'd heard no P initial before. Another thing didn't add up. Rocket was never an organization to kill outright without something in it for them. Rare Pokémon, money, sometimes taking a hostage for ransom. This didn't seem like their style.

"Also," future-Silver scowled as he spoke. "I have reason to believe that Legendary Pokémon are in danger."

"What makes you say that?" Silver asked warily.

"No ordinary Pokémon could have defeated Fang. Not when Lyra's life is threatened. Even a team of them couldn't have. Something strong managed to keep him in submission while…" he sighed, not being able to finish the sentence.

"Also, I heard reports that a cave near Cerulean City collapsed in the middle of the night. Apparently, only a day before I went to Mount Mortar. No earthquake could have caused that level of damage, but the cave was known to hold strong Pokémon and rumored to be home to some sort of creature of enormous power."

Silver paled in the revelation of this. A shiver passed through him.

"So…" he said slowly, breathing heavily. "What is it you need me to do?"

Future-Silver raised an eyebrow, "I thought, of all things that would be obvious. You have to protect Lyra. For _you_, there's still time."

Silver blanched. "But Lyra is a better trainer than me. How could I protect her?"

His older self sighed. "Probably in more ways than you could imagine. You have to attempt it."

Silver nodded slowly, knowing that he would do everything he could. This future looked bleak, and he knew that Lyra deserved another chance at living.

Celebi stirred from her perch in the tree. She couldn't jeep Silver here for much longer. It was time for him to be returned to his own era. She floated towards the shrine, and for the third time, Silver saw the trees begin to glow.

"Wait," he said, pausing. He glanced back at his future self. "What will happen to you if the future changes? Will you…er, you know… disappear?"

Future-Silver blinked in surprise, and shared a glance with Fang.

"No matter what, whether I cease to exist, or I change into whom you shape yourself to be, I do not care. As long as this is changed and Lyra gets her life back, then I will be happy knowing that I was a part of it," he finally said decisively.

"You don't care what will happen to you?"

Older-Silver shook his head. "No, not if it can bring her back." he noticed Silver's amazed stare, and gave a smile jaded weighed down by an incredible sadness, tears gathering in the corners of his stormy eyes. "I'm sure you'll come to understand soon enough. Hopefully, you'll realize it a lot sooner than I did. For me, it came too late. Farewell."

Silver opened his mouth to ask what was meant in those last sentences, but Celebi grabbed his hand. As the forest disappeared in a rush of color, he could have sworn he heard echo of a whisper.

"…_I'm sorry. Good luck."_

**(~)  
Again, I hope this chapter wasn't extremely confusing! Future-Silver is a bit OOC, but that's because of the events that's happened. Hopefully I've kept (our) Silver in character.  
Criticize! I won't mind! I need the experience!**

**Ohmigosh, college in a week. (holy crud)  
Hopefully, I won't be too out of my mind so I can continue.**

**((Revised note: Hah, how long ago this feels. Senior year of college already, what happened to the time?))  
(~)**


	5. Present

**(~)**

**((NOTICE: THIS CHAPTER HAS BEEN REVISED 9/13/2013))**

**Hey everyone! Meta-Akira here!**  
**Hope this story is good! Yes, the last chapter (the part about the collapsed Cerulean Cave) references the original GSC games. In Gen II, Cerulean Cave was callapsed, destroyed by a certain Legendary who lived inside. The only evidence of its existance was an item you could find called the "Beserk Gene", which confuses the user but raises attack. In HG and SS, the Cerulean Cave wasn't destroyed. Just kind of making a parallel between Silver's old future (GSC) and his redone future (HG SS).  
Yeah. Anyways, thanks to Doggiefan and candyXkyo for their support. And to Lux-9!  
As always, read, enjoy, and review!  
I don't own the character of HG and SS.  
(~)**

Silver knew what to expect.

But that made this little journey no more pleasant than the first time.

Bright, blinding, whirling color. The spinning. The simultaneous sensations that he was falling, being dragged, and glued to one spot- all at once. Joy.

He was quite sure that he had yelled out several choice swear words, but- as before –he heard no sound except for a rushing gale.

One thing was for sure, he'd never time travel again if he had any say on the matter.

Once the phenomenon came to an end, he felt his legs give out.

He waited, on his back, for the world to stop spinning, and he opened his eyes.

Did he really travel through time? It seemed like the same thing. Emerald-green Ilex Forest. Humble, yet elegant shrine. Same clearing, same trees, same paths. Same Meganium. Oh… he'd left his starter behind, hadn't he?

Silver wasn't prepared for his first Pokémon, who'd been frantic about his master's disappearance, to dive bomb him out of sheer concern. He groaned as the wind rush out of him. Meganium took the time to give Silver's face a once-over with a large, smooth tongue.

"Ugh, get _off_ of me, you pansy," he muttered in disgust. Mustering his strength, he shoved the sauropod away from him and cautiously sat up. The motion made his head swim. He gingerly clutched his head, feeling another pounding ache develop behind his eyes. Trying fruitlessly to shake it off, he looked at his time traveling companion of the past few hours.

Celebi looked at him with wide blue eyes, a distinct apologetic gleam showing. Whether that was because of what she had dragged him to see or just fussing over how he was taking the effects of timetravel, he wasn't sure.

"Well, what do you want?" Silver said, trying to sound irate, but instead sounding exhausted. He felt physically ill, and rested his head on his knees.

She hummed in response, more tired than he was. She blinked at him, trying to convey the seriousness of what had just happened. Silver found he didn't need to be reminded of it. He also seemed to understand what else Celebi was trying to convey and she shook her head after glancing at him and the shrine.

"I know, I know. If I screw this up, I can't summon you about it again, right?"

Celebi nodded regretfully. She bent the rules this time. But she knew it wasn't wise to do it again. Dialga, though realms away, would be furious at the little nymph if she meddled too many times. He was the rightful Master of Time, and playing with the timestream could lead to disastrous effects. The only reason she had done it this once was out of her feeling of duty and loyalty to Lyra.

Silver sighed, wondering how in the world things had gotten so messed up. He groaned again, roughly massaging his temples in an attempt to rid himself of the time-induced migraine that was surely starting to kick up in his skull. Meganium glanced between his master and the strange little creature that had whisked him away for no reason. Celebi looked on nervously until Silver deigned to look her way again.

"So, are you leaving yet?" he asked gruffly.

She nodded slowly.

"Well," Silver paused, still not used to giving gratitude, "thanks, then. For the warning. I… I appreciate it. I'll try to... I'll stop it from happening."

Celebi smiled at him gratefully, and he was suddenly struck by how similar the Pokémon's sweet smile was to Lyra's. He tried to shake away the thought.

With one last hum of appreciation, she flitted away through the trees, vanishing from sight.

Silver sat in relative silence, trying to absorb what all had happened and deal with the simultaneous pounding in his skull and squirming of his stomach. His thoughts were interrupted by a nudge to his shoulder.

The sauropod blinked, looking extremely confused. Understandable, he'd been left behind. All he knew was that his master disappeared without a trace, then popped back up after those distressing lights had faded, looking as green in the face as Celebi.

"Meg?" He asked Silver, tilting his head to the side.

"I… erm… I traveled to the future with Celebi."

Meganium looked even more confused now, cocking his head to the other side.

_Great. My own Pokémon probably thinks I'm nuts._

"Listen, I don't care whether or not you believe me, but we've got to find Lyra."

Meganium seemed startled by Silver's statement. Usually, his master didn't really go actively looking for the girl. At least, not since the battle with Lance and Clair at the Dragon's Den. He had a sneaking suspicion that before all of that, Silver had intentionally followed Lyra around Johto and to Mount Moon.

"Don't give me that look," Silver said hastily. Meganium blinked innocently at him. "Lyra's in trouble. Someone is going to try to hurt her."

_Well, _that_ certainly got his attention,_ Silver thought as Meganium straightened up, looking positively indignant, antennae quivering.

"And it's up to us to keep that from happening."

Meganium stood up even straighter, reflecting the determination that Silver had in him. He smirked at the starter, feeling his aftereffects start to fade away.

_He always was fond of Lyra. Ever since the first time he met her- the second time I met her…_

(*(*(_Flashback_)*)*)

Silver had been running. For a long time, it seemed like he had been running. Running from authorities who were after a red-haired punk. Running from Kanto. Running from the expectations of him.

Clutching a stitch in his side, his footsteps gradually slowed as he spotted the outskirts of the next town- Cherrygrove.

He was sure that the Professor back in New Bark knew what had happened by now. He wasn't _that_ oblivious. But Silver was quite sure that he at least had a head start on any police officers that Elm may have called.

He finally came to a stop, reaching inside of his pocket to feel the cold sphere. He took it out, fiddling with it. It held his first Pokémon. The first step towards becoming an undefeatable trainer. Towards being the strongest. Towards erasing the foul mark of his pathetic father and his gang.

He snorted in raw contempt, rage briefly bubbling through him.

He would do this by himself. He didn't need the help of a hundred lousy grunts.

He switched his gaze back to the pokeball in his hand. His choice had been almost automatic, probably because of the girl he'd seen earlier.

Looking as happy as she had shouldn't be allowed. She had practically bounced out of Elm's lab with a feisty young Totodile bounding excitedly after her. He wanted to have a leg up on her. He wanted to show her that there was nothing- _absolutely nothing_ –to be happy about in this world.

So when he broke into the Lab, he swiped the pokeball containing the grass type, indicated by a leaf sticker on the cushion it had been lying on. What better way to show he was stronger than with a simple type advantage?

He was nudged out of his thoughts when he glimpsed a familiar flash of white. That absurd hat… It was her. A grim smirk appeared on his face. The smirk soured when he saw the Totodile happily trailing his trainer.

_Pathetic. She doesn't even keep him in his pokeball. It's probably too difficult for her to control._

He stepped out into the open, and the girl spotted him. She smiled brightly, making him frown in response. Why was she smiling at him? He'd shoved her away the last time he saw her. He wouldn't admit, however, that he had actually been a bit scared that she would report him before he could attempt what he came to New Bark to do.

"Hey, it's you!" She said brightly, walking his way. She held a round, shiny object in her arms, with red and blue triangular marks splashed across it. She spotted the pokeball in Silver's hand, and her smile got even bigger. "So you _did_ go and ask Elm for a Pokémon!"

Silver shifted in his stance uneasily. "Something like that."

"Good for you! Well, can I see?"

Silver glared at first at her peppy, conversational attitude. But he smirked when he had a different idea. He would wipe that little smile off of her face.

"How about we battle?" He suggested with a casual tone that only hinted at malice.

Her smile didn't falter in the slightest.

_But it will soon,_ Silver thought smugly.

"Sure, that sounds like fun."

_Fun?_ _Battles aren't meant to be fun._

"Let's go, Fang," she called to her energetic Totodile. The blue gator eagerly took his place in front of her. He took up a jovial attempt at a fighter's stance.

_She nicknamed the thing? Pathetic. That will only get her attached._

"Let's do this!" Silver called menacingly, throwing his own pokeball. To tell the truth, he didn't know what it was called, but he'd soon find out when it inevitably crushed the little alligator.

A bright flash of light swarmed out of the pokeball, and it took shape.

"Chika."  
Silver was flabbergasted. The thing couldn't look more absurdly… cute. He stared at the pale creature with the leaf that waved slowly on its head. All chances of intimidation were thrown right out the window. The girl's smile only brightened further.

"Aw, it's so sweet!" she said, kneeling down and beckoning him closer. "Hi, Chikorita! Aren't you adorable!"

"Chika!"

The Pokémon Silver presumed was called Chikorita- _his_ Chikorita –waved his leaf affectionately in the girl's face, giving off a sweet aroma. He was soaking up the attention that the girl was giving him. The pigtailed girl chuckled, patting him on the head.

"_If_ you don't mind, I'd like to get this battle started," Silver half-yelled in exasperation, trying to get the situation back under his control instead of hers.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry," the girl laughed, patting Chikorita's head once more before the little Pokémon hopped over to Silver.

Despite his Pokémon not being the least bit frightening, he tried once more to shake her by sneering, "Aren't you worried because my Pokémon has the type advantage?"

The girl glanced at him, one hand on her chin, the other carefully wrapped around the egg she was carrying.

"Well, Fang and I have done some training while we were heading to Mr. Pokémon's house. So I think we'll be okay," she said with a nod. Silver rolled his eyes. "Thanks for the concern, though!"

_I wasn't concerned about you, friggin' optimist._

"You ready?" She asked brightly. Silver grunted in response.

"Let's go, Chikorita," Silver said quickly, making a bitter face as he said the Pokémon's name. Even the name sounded weak. "Use your Tackle attack!"

"Fang, dodge around it and give it a Scratch!"

"Toto-toto-dile!"

The Totodile was astoundingly light on its feet, dancing around every Tackle that Chikorita tried to make. When the grass-type barreled past him, he swiped his claws at the Pokémon's side.

"Ugh, is that the best you can do?" Silver shot at Chikorita. Chikorita flinched before looking a bit more serious.

"Watch for a pattern and hit him with a Tackle when you've got it!" Chikorita nodded, concentrating on Totodile's footwork. He charged forwards, this time, catching Fang by surprise with a well-executed Tackle.

"Fang, use Rage!" the girl said, and the blue Pokémon rammed into Chikorita, but it seemed like a rather weak attack.

"Pitiful, use your Tackle again!"

Chikorita again successfully hit Fang, but the Totodile's eyes flashed dangerously in response.

"Rage again, Fang!"

Fang rammed into Chikorita again, this time doing noticeably more damage.

_How did it do more damage? It was a weak attack the last time he did it!_

"Dang it! Chikorita, use Razor Leaf," Silver growled. Chikorita blinked in obvious confusion.

"I think you have to train a bit more with Chikorita before she learns that," the girl offered helpfully.

"Oh, shut up! Just take that thing down with another Tackle!"

Chikorita obliged putting his heart into the attack, but Fang's eyes flashed again. He ran at the Grass-Type, bowling him over and defeating him. The girl punched the air, set down her egg, and scooped Fang up into a hug, twirling the triumphant Pokémon around in her arms.

Silver was stunned. He turned his angry mercury eyes towards the Chikorita lying at his feet.

"You useless pansy," he growled.

"Oh, don't say that," the girl said, walking over. She knelt down and patted the exhausted Chikorita. "That must have been your first battle, huh. You did a good job," she said sweetly. Chikorita looked happier from the compliment.

"Don't tell him that," Silver grumbled, returning the tired creature to its capsule. "The thing lost. I don't understand how- he had the type advantage."

"Well, he did pretty well. Type isn't everything. I mean, Fang was more experienced, so he knew more attacks," she said with a shrug.

"What was that attack, anyways?" Silver asked sharply, crossing his arms.

"Rage," she said. "It increases strength every time the Pokémon is hit. I noticed you kept using Tackle, so I thought it would work."

_That's actually… a good strategy_, Silver thought to himself. But there was no way he'd tell _her_ that.

"You did pretty well, though," the girl stated. "What with telling your Chikorita to find the pattern in Fang's movements."

Silver blinked, thrown off guard by her compliment. He tried to ignore it and went back to his intimidation tactic.

"I'm going to be the best trainer in the world. You'd better not get in my way," he rumbled threateningly.

"Oh, I'm going to try to be the best, too. My name's Lyra, what's yours?"

Silver's eyes narrowed. So, she was trying for the same goal he was, was she? Without thinking, he started walking, his shoulder purposely bumping hers as he passed.

"None of your business. I'm not looking for friends," Silver uttered, feeling a slight tinge of regret. He expected, almost wanted, for her to lash out at him in return. It was too strange for him to try to intimidate someone only for them to act friendly in return.

"Oops, you dropped something," Lyra called after him. She picked up something flat and plastic. After glancing at it, she held it out to him as he walked away. "Here, Silver."

He froze in his tracks before whirling back around. He snatched it back with more force than necessary, looking sullen as he stuffed it back in his pocket.

"What's wrong? You didn't want me to know?"

Silver didn't answer. He turned to leave a second time, and again, she stopped him with her words.

"You know, for the record, I like your name."

_What?_

_He stared at her over his shoulder, a bewildered expression taking the place of his scowl._

"Y-you do?" he asked, thoroughly confused. What had warranted her giving him compliments?

_Why the heck is she being so nice? Even after I pushed her- twice? Why is she so happy?_

"Yeah," Lyra said slowly, before she jumped. "Oh, crap! I forgot! Professor Elm called, telling me that an emergency came up!"

Silver felt a feeling of dread in his stomach. Lyra scooped up Fang and the egg, and started to rush off in the direction of New Bark Town.

"You should get to the Pokémon Center to heal Chikorita. It was nice to meet you again, Silver! I gotta go! Bye!"

Silver felt a slight sense of fear as she hurriedly waved at him and ran out of town, the Totodile hot on her heels.

_Dangit. She's gonna go back to Elm's place and find out that I stole this Pokémon. Then…_

_Then she'll report me to authorities._

He was dreading the moment when she would find out. But why should he care?

One thing was for certain, he was sure that she'd find him again. And he'd do his best to defeat her.

(*(*(_End Flashback_)*)*)

Silver has passed through the building that separated the Ilex Forest from Azalea Town. He didn't know where to find Lyra, but he figured this was as good a place as any to find out.

It was Sunday, after all, so someone at the chapel there might know where she had gone. Following that logic, he headed into the town quickly, hoping that he could track her down. Meganium was following his trainer closely. He wasn't sure about all this time travel talk, but he didn't want Lyra to come to harm.

What future-Silver didn't know was that Silver had already encountered Lyra a few times recently since she had gone into extensive training. So he didn't have too much time before RP, whoever that was, would begin to torment her.

And he wanted to put an end to it before it began.

He strode into town, glimpsing the humble church, and grimacing at the thought of the small graveyard behind it. But before he could take a step towards it-

"Silver?"

He whirled around, hearing the familiar voice.

Lyra stood there, beaming brightly, her cinnamon eyes meeting his mercury ones.

"L-Lyra?"

**(~)  
Hope you enjoyed this chapter and Silver's flashback. Hope I don't make him too OOC in the flashbacks. I've tweaked them a bit. If I do get too OOC, please let me know!  
Holy Miltank! I'm moving into my college dorm tomorrow! I'm really freaked out! Wish me luck in college. Hope my roommate and I get along! I'll try my hardest to work on this story at least once a week!**

**((Revised Note: Once a week? I laugh at your optimism, past self.))**

**Fang the Feraligatr wants to you review, comment, compliment, or criticize! Rawr.  
Later all. ~Meta-Akira.  
(~)**


	6. Battle

**(~)  
Hey everyone! Sorry for the long interval between chapters! College life is busy!  
Thanks to Doggiefan and MarlinMarlen for their reviews!  
As always, read, enjoy, and review!  
(~)**

She came, flouncing up to him, pigtails bouncing under her marshmallow hat- unknowingly defying the bleak future with her mere presence. Her cinnamon eyes exuded warmth, cheerfulness, and curiosity. Fang followed after her, looking almost as pleased as his trainer.

Silver couldn't open his mouth without stammering like an idiot.

He felt a mixture of emotions, but above all the rest was one prevalent feeling: relief.

She was here. She was safe. She was happy. Thank God, she was smiling. Her bright smile lit up her face, and Silver realized that he would miss it terribly if its owner was despicably wiped from existence.

"Lyra, y-you're okay," Silver whispered gratefully.

"Huh?" Lyra cocked her head to the side in confusion, having not heard what he said. "What's up, Silver? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Eh? Oh, nothing," Silver lied, glancing away. "I just missed you."

Silence spiraled in like swooping Fearow. Silver belatedly realized what he said and froze stiffly. Panicking, he tried to amend his slip of the tongue.

"I-I mean, it's been a while, and it's good to see you in one piece. I don't need my rival to go and hurt herself before I can beat her in a battle."

_Great. Way to sound like a total jerk._

"Oh," Lyra said, surprised. But her face melted back into its standard smile. Silver mentally sighed in relief that she bought his explanation and wasn't annoyed by his implied insult that she couldn't take care of herself. "It's nice to see you again too, Silver."

She sighed in contentment, her bright eyes swinging past the chapel. The sun, having been inching its way back down towards the tree-lined horizon, dappled it with golden-orange rays, bathing it in a quaint pool of light. She smiled at it fondly. Fang echoed her content sigh, dropping onto all fours and making himself comfortable beside his standing master.

"So what are you doing around here, Silver?"

Silver, who was also looking at the chapel, glanced her way. He buried his hands in his pockets, trying to feign indifference.

"Just taking Meganium for our usual walk on the weekends," he said, sounding casual, but still filled with relief and gratitude that she was alive and well.

Lyra jumped as though she had been shocked. She wheeled around to look at Meganium, who had been looking a little miffed about being left out of the conversation.

"I'm so sorry, Mega! I didn't mean to forget to say hello to you, too," the teenage girl said to the Pokémon, using her usual nickname for the green creature. "Can you forgive me?"

Meganium maintained his façade of being offended, but couldn't keep it up for more than five seconds. He warbled his forgiveness, and she ran up to give him a hug. He, in turn, licked her face, and she burst out into her clear, musical laughter. It was a refreshing sound to Silver, whose past several hours consisted of shock, depression, and anguish.

_She's so happy…_

Geez, it seemed like Silver was continuously thinking that ever since he'd first met Lyra. He was constantly amazed by how she kept to the positive side, and always found the good in every situation… and person.

"Silver? You alright?"

He was jerked out of his musings by her voice. He blinked, looking over at her. Both she and Meganium were regarding him with confusion. He must've been staring off…

"Y-yeah, I'm… I was just…" he grasped at straws, trying to find an excuse for spacing out. "I was- Want to battle?"

Lyra looked at him curiously, but her smile was back.

"Alright, sure! What's a visit with you without having a battle! It's like a tradition with us, isn't it?"

Silver wasn't even aware that he had begun smiling with her. "How's a one-on-one?"

"Starters only, huh?"

It was like she knew what he was thinking. Something inside of him seemed to shiver at the thought.

He nodded. Fang, who had been lying down during all of this, got to his hind legs and ambled over, standing before Lyra loyally. His yellow eyes were gleaming. Meganium looked a little put out. He enjoyed battling, yes. But he was a bit hesitant about battling Lyra.

Lyra noticed the grass-type's reluctance. Grinning, she shouted, "Try to impress me, Mega!"

Meganium perked up, his yellow antennae quivering. Silver smirked as he bounded over, taking a battler's stance.

Silver already knew how this battle would end. Lyra would ultimately be victorious. But he would still try.

"Fang, let's cool things off with an Ice Beam!"

The massive blue Pokémon reared back his head, opening his gaping jaws and releasing a powerful bluish-white blast of pure, cold energy.

_Hah. At least I'm prepared this time!_

"Meganium, use your Light Screen!"  
Meganium bugled, throwing a pinkish transparent shield up around himself. The Ice Beam appeared to phase through it, but the screen acted like a filter, stopping half of the attack and dramatically reducing its power. Still, it was a force to be reckoned with, and Meganium was still in trouble. Which was why Silver put in another precaution.

"Now, Meganium! The berry!"

Meganium picked the light blue berry that had been hidden under his petals, hanging by a string. He quickly snatched it up, swallowing it just before the remains of the Ice Beam made contact.

"Wha-" Lyra gasped as the Ice Beam, already reduced, did little to Meganium. She regained composure, grinning at Silver from across the makeshift battlefield.

"A Yache berry, huh? I have to admit, you were smart to anticipate Fang's special technique for Grass Types," her voice reflected her approval. Silver smiled in response.

"I had to. Last time we battled, you demolished both Meganium and Crobat with that move," he replied, glad this wasn't going to be a one-hit KO match. But now that Meganium ate the Yache Berry, he only could rely on his Light Screen and his evasion when it came to Ice Beam. He didn't have a large supply of those berries at the present time, since they were rare in Johto.

Lyra thought. Fang's water-type attacks were also terribly diminished from the Light Screen. Time for a different tactic.

"Fine, if Special Attacks are out for the time being, let's show 'em your Crunch!"

Fang dropped to all fours and charged, at Meganium, startling Silver yet again by how agile the bulky Pokémon really was.

_Dang, he's so fast,_ Silver thought as the Feraligatr was upon Meganium before Silver had time to shout a counterattack. His widening jaws effortlessly passed through the special filter of Light Screen and locked onto Meganium's back.

Silver winced, deciding to go on the offensive this time.

"Meganium, use your Petal Dance at close range!"

Meganium's petals began to glow. Lyra's didn't seem too worried.

"Fang, you know what to do!"

Letting go of the creature and putting some distance between them, the Feraligatr growled and summoned an enormous wave of water that swept over the two of them. Despite acting as a filter, the bubble containing them became swamped with the Surf, effectively deterring the movements of the petals as well as attacking Meganium.

Meganium flailed around, trying to control the movements of the petals, but overcome by the wall of water that was stopping them. Silver groaned as he realized his mistake. Meganium would continue to use Petal Dance for several turns until he became fatigued. Lyra could stop the attack with Surf while riding out the effects of Light Screen. As usual, she was a fast thinker and was good at improvisation.

Finally, the pink filter faded from existence. Unfortunately, this was when Meganium finally put an end to his frenzy of an attack, panting heavily from the energy he had lost. He looked quite dizzy as well. Lyra pressed her advantage.

"Alright, Fang, now that we have him on the spot, let's go with an Ice Beam!"

"Meganium, c'mon. Snap out of it and use your Body Slam!"

Meganium, however, was disoriented. He tried to follow Silver's directions, but instead plowed into the ground unflatteringly. He cried out as the Ice Beam hit him. Fortunately, since he tripped, the majority of the move missed, and he was only grazed by the raw cold beam. He got to his feet shakily, trying to clear his head by shaking it from side to side. He looked better and his eyes seemed clear again. Silver sighed in relief.

"Okay, let's try it again, Meganium! Give him a Body Slam!"

Meganium cried out in affirmation, running at the Feraligatr in an attempt to bowl him over. Without a word spoken from his trainer, Feraligatr moved out of the way, displaying astounding agility belied by his size, leaving Meganium to wheel around in another attempt.

Silver couldn't help but smile slightly at the memory this brought up.

"Meganium, remember our first battle!" Silver shouted out.

Reminiscent of that time so long ago in Cherrygrove, Meganium concentrated on Fang's movement, putting all of his attention on the rival Pokémon. He smirked a little, and attempted another Body Slam. When Fang went to dodge, Meganium sensed the Feraligatr's movement, and swung around, catching the Pokémon by surprise and successfully hitting him with a Body Slam.

The Feraligatr growled in response, pushing Meganium off. Lyra was smiling, her eyes gleaming. When Fang looked to her, she nodded, and he nodded back. He got onto all fours and began charging. Silver tensed, ready to call out a counterattack, but paused when he realized that Fang wasn't charging _at_ Meganium. He was moving around Meganium in a circle. A rather erratic circle, and he was constantly changing direction. Silver and Meganium looked at each other in confusion. Despite the Feraligatr's impressive speed and maneuverability, it wasn't Agility.

Silver glanced at Lyra, who was watching her Feraligatr's progress, full of excitement and exhilaration from the match. She already looked victorious, a light breeze catching her hair and making her pigtails sway. She glanced his way, and their eyes caught each other, his metallic ones meeting her bright, deep, cinnamon-brown ones. She grinned defiantly, albeit good-naturedly, at him, and he felt a shiver pass through him again.

_Why am I staring at _her,_ dammit? I need to watch the match!_

"Meg!"

His Pokémon's shout brought him back to earth, and he finally looked back at his Pokémon. Meganium looked alarmed, and confused as to why his master had stopped directing his actions.

Silver looked over at the still-mobile Feraligatr, and his eyes widened, noticing and recognizing the glowing blue orb growing between the large jaws.

Before either he or his Pokémon could react, Lyra shouted, "Now!"

Fang halted in his tracks, pointing his open mouth towards Meganium, and let loose a solid torrent of water as thick in diameter as Lyra was tall.

Meganium was hit, and lifted off his feet from the ferocious attack, sending him flying. He hit the ground with a solid thud. It was obvious he didn't have it in him to get up again. Lyra cheered and went to envelop Fang's neck in a hug.

Silver slowly walked over towards his fallen companion. He looked over Meganium slowly to see if he had been hurt badly. Though, with Lyra, it was obvious he wouldn't. Lyra made sure that if an opponent's Pokémon was fainted, it was not injured terribly. She hated to bring excess pain to someone- Pokémon or person. She was kind-hearted like that.

With a sigh, Silver pulled out Meganium's pokeball.

"Wait!"

He looked up to see Lyra scurrying over, Fang right beside her. She held something small in her hand. "Use this."

Silver's eyes widened when he saw a curiously shaped opaque beige crystal sitting in her palm. It was small, with six points. A Max Revive. Those were incredibly rare, not sold in shops.

"Where'd you get that?"

"Oh, I have a few of them. You can sometimes find them in caves. Take it," she insisted.

Silver shook his head, "Those are rare. You should keep it for yourself."

She also shook her head in response. "I have a pen pal in the Sinnoh region. She sometimes stumbles across these underground and sends them to me."

Not taking no for an answer, she knelt down next to Meganium. Stroking the exhausted creature's head, she opened his mouth and placed the crystal on his tongue. As it dissolved, Meganium began to stir, opening his eyes blearily.

"Hi, Mega!" Lyra greeted him cheerfully. "You feeling better?"

Meganium brightened and grumbled affirmatively, as more of his strength returned. He was still tired, and the day was drawing to a close. Fang shared his weariness.

"C'mon. Let's head to the Pokémon Center," Lyra suggested. "We can stay there tonight. I'd love a nice bed as opposed to a sleeping bag this time."

Silver nodded, returning Meganium to his pokeball, as the Pokémon was starting to get sleepy.

As the two of them headed out towards the eastern part of the town towards the Center, Lyra decided to strike up some conversation.

"I thought you battle really well today, Silver," she said brightly. He glanced over at her. She was looking at the trees. "You're really getting better."  
"Thanks," he said quietly. "You did pretty well, too."

He wasn't used to compliments yet. Giving or getting. But what he said was true.

"Thanks. I'm glad you remembered our first battle. I was pretty impressed."

All was silent for a moment. "You and Meganium are becoming a better team. You have some great strategies when it comes to attack and item combinations."

Silver nodded, allowing a very faint smile to form on his face. He'd thought things through when it came to Lyra's Feraligatr. And it made him happy to know that she had liked his plan.

"I like battling with you, you know?" she continued to chatter.

"Really?" Silver liked battling with her, too. Not just because of their rivalry. But because of their… friendship. The two of them had made it to the Pokémon Center. They headed through the automatic glass doors.

"Yeah. You really give me a challenge. And you have such interesting strategies. They make me think on my feet," she said with a nod.

"You seemed to defeat me no problem," Silver stated flatly.

"But it's hard to find good opponents. You still make battling interesting and difficult," Lyra explained cheerfully before addressing the Nurse Joy sitting behind the counter. "Two rooms for overnight, please. And could you give our Pokémon a rest overnight, too?"

"Of course," the nurse replied kindly. She handed them two trays. Lyra returned Fang and placed her pokeballs into the tray. Silver did likewise. The nurse took the trays and nodded at them before heading off to the back room.

"Rooms Three and Four are available. Down the hall to your left. Have a good night's sleep!"

"Thanks much," Lyra responded brightly before departing for the hall, Silver trailing her.

She paused in front of her room, and turned to face him.

"Well, good night," he said, about to shuffle off to the next room.

"Silver?"

He paused and looked back at her.

She smiled warmly at him, and gave him a quick hug. His heart unexpectedly skipped a beat, and only accelerated when she murmured her next words before leaving for her room.

"I missed you, too."

**(~)  
No flashback this time. Sorreh! Hope you guys are enjoying it so far.  
As for recommendations, I suggest "Pearls" by Lux-9, as always.  
Also, for some one-shots, I recommend the following:  
"The Key" by Christopher Avrich  
"Jar of Hearts" by xxDaxelnaraxx**

Review, comment, criticize. Fang the Feraligatr wants you to.  
See ya! ~Meta-Akira  
(~)


	7. Haunting

**(~)  
Alert! Extremely short chapter ahead! Just wanted to let ya know!  
Thanks go out big time to xxDaxelnaraxx! And to Ruejay for the glowing review! Thanks, you guys! ^^  
I don not own any of the characters of HG or SS. Derp.  
And, as always, read, enjoy, and review!  
(~)**

The room that had been provided for him was plain. A small, wooden desk with a small lamp. White walls with a single framed picture of a Slowpoke. How original. Besides that, there was a framed map of Johto hanging on the wall, with Azalea Town helpfully marked with a "You Are Here" sticker, if someone needed the obvious pointed out to them.

But none of that was what Silver had on his mind. He was lying on his back on the single bed. His hands were behind his head and he was staring up at the ceiling tiles. His choice of clothes for sleeping weren't all that different from his standard get-up. A baggy black t-shirt and loose blue pants.

It was pretty clear that he wasn't going to get a lot of sleep tonight. Too many thoughts were whirling through his head like a tornado.

Every time he willed his eyes to close, something sprung up in his mind that forced them open again, to think and search fruitlessly for answers in the ceiling tiles above.

_Who is it I'm looking for?_

_How can I stop this?_

_What can_ I_ do?_

_Where do I start?_

_Why her?_

_Why me?_

_Who would do this?_

As the last question reared its ugly head, Silver angrily rolled onto his side and punched his pillow into a more comfortable shape. There was a lot to think about, and only now did it truly, completely crash down on him, when the silence of the night was prevalent and not even Meganium was around to distract him from his own mind.

He let out a heavy sigh, his anger dissipating, but his frustration remaining. He felt exhausted after the day's events. But his mind was on hyperdrive, frantically hopping from one dire question to another, with all of them having one thing in common: he had no answers in which he could use to put them to rest.

_I have to calm down,_ he thought to himself, attempting to dispel the hurricane of looming questions with a shake of his head. If anything, they came back even stronger.

Sighing again in defeat, he could do nothing else but wait for restless sleep to take him.

Restless sleep he would have preferred to have been without, in retrospect.

x~x~x~x

_The cave was big, damp, and dark._

_The waterfall droned on, repetitively roaring as its contents were whisked along and shoved off the edge of stone._

_But something was wrong. Something was amiss. The cavern seemed echoingly haunting._

_Why were there no Pokémon around?_

_He frowned in confusion, feeling around on his belt. With a strange jolt, he realized that none of his Pokémon were there. His bag was gone, too. He was completely alone in this cave. But why did it seem to be so full of familiarity? The only cave he knew like the back of his hand was Dragon Den. He was sure that he didn't recognize this place._

_And yet…_

_He moved forwards, completely sure of where he was going. Well, not completely. He knew, somehow, this way was the correct way to go. But as to where or what it led to, he had absolutely no idea. _

_A cave without Zubat and Geodude was a strange thing. This cave seemed so amazingly silent- even the pounding of the waterfall seemed muted. Without the Pokémon's presence, it was all still._

_But he glanced over his shoulder, feeling as though many, many eyes were scrutinizing his every move._

_He was never a nervous person. He rarely felt fear. And when he did, he was prone to denying it and burying it beneath some other emotion. Anger, most commonly._

_So why did he suddenly feel very exposed? Was it his lack of Pokémon? Or was it the cave's lack of Pokémon? Or was it something completely different?_

_He walked slowly, deliberately. Despite feeling unnerved and reluctant, he continued on at a steady, determined pace. As if he weren't in control of his own movements. As if he were merely watching events unfold._

_Through twisting stone corridors and gaping, wide caverns, he continued his slow march._

_And every step triggered a small wave of dread and anxiety._

…

_He was certain, now. Someone was watching him. Intently. But every time he glanced over his shoulder when paranoia built up to breaking point, all his eyes met were shadows and stones. No sound came except for his breathing, the distant, muted rage of the waterfall, and his footsteps along the craggy floor. In comparison to the waterfall, his breathing and his footfalls seemed profanely loud._

_Up ahead, he could see a crudely-hewn arch carved into the rock, forming some sort of doorway. Though his mind was telling him to turn around- to leave, his legs kept moving at that horrible, slow pace. His eyes were on the arch as it progressively inched its way closer._

_He felt as though hundreds of eyes were watching his movement. It was an eerie feeling._

_He stopped in front of the arch. Beyond it, he didn't know what existed. But a horrible feeling was erupting in the pit of his stomach._

_The silence spiraled horribly as he stared silently at the arch that separated him and the terrifying unknown._

_With great hesitation and a feeling of impending doom, he steeled himself to go through the rough entrance, a thousand unseen eyes watching._

…

_He was in another cavern. It was completely quiet, except for the mournful cries of something. It sounded as though it were a Pokémon struck with a mortal wound and keening away its final hours._

_Slowly moving around a boulder, he found himself looking at what resembled an empty funeral ritual, sitting here in the cave. Rows of empty metal chairs sat coldly, all facing a coffin a far ways away. Flowers were lying in heaps, withered with black, drooping petals. Everything seemed to have lost color, as though the sadness of the occasion had caused any vibrancy to flee. It was deathly silent except for the continuous keening that seemed to be coming from close to the coffin, which- strangely –was in color in stark contrast to the rest of the objects._

_He was running. Towards the coffin and the source of the wail._

_He came to a dead stop when he saw her picture sitting atop the closed coffin. He gaped soundlessly, feeling struck. No. This wasn't supposed to happen. He was supposed to stop all of this._

_From behind another boulder, beside the coffin, the wail turned into a snarl._

_His breath caught in his throat as a Feraligatr leapt over the large rock, landing in front of him. Leering at him with all the strength the Feraligatr possessed, and more. It was frightening._

_The enormous creature lowered himself to all fours, baring his fangs and focusing all of his utter odium upon him. Fang stepped forwards, surely and threateningly._

_He stepped back, fear exploding within him. Fang looked hell-bent on destroying him._

_As the Feraligatr slowly, horribly, approached, he opened his enormous gaping jaws. Instead of a roar, something much more horrifying surfaced._

Your fault,_ came a cold, hissing voice full of loathing. _Your fault.

_He couldn't help but panic. He tried to protest. Unable to move his feet, he opened his mouth to proclaim his innocence, but nothing escaped his mouth. He fell backwards as the enraged Feraligatr was nearly upon him._

_He instinctively felt at his empty belt, and was surprised to feel his hand brush across a cool sphere that had not been there before. He fumbled quickly, his fingers trembling._

_Out burst the green sauropod. He felt something like relief. His partner. His companion. His friend. Meganium could help him._

_The Pokémon stared past Feraligatr. Meganium noticed the coffin and stiffened._

_He froze as Meganium slowly turned to face him, eyes full of the same hatred as Fang's. Meganium's mouth opened and hissed the same words._

Your fault.

Your fault!

YOUR FAULT!

_He clutched at his head, shaking in frantically to dispel the Pokémon's words that were haunting him so. No…_

_No…_

YOUR FAULT!

_NO!_

_He still couldn't speak. His mouth worked furiously, but nothing would, could, come out. Both Pokémon were approaching him, murderous rage in their eyes, which had begun to glow red._

_He could do nothing as they suddenly lunged at him, faces reflecting the same terrifying snarl…_

x~x~x~x

Silver sat bolt upright, awakened from his sleep as suddenly as if someone had dumped ice water on him.

He sat, shoulders heaving, hands shaking, and entirely drenched in sweat, waiting for the pulse that was pounding in his ears to recede somewhat.

He felt like a cornered Rattata being hunted by a keen-eyed Noctowl. At any moment, he was sure, something was about to strike at him with unerring precision.

After a few moments of tense stillness, he dared to let his eyes wander, though he still kept stock-still. The digital clock beside his bead read 2:21 a.m. Brilliant. There were several more hours before this hellish night was over.

He shakily ran a hand through his crimson hair, still breathing shallowly from the lingering effects of the dream. It was sharply etched into his mind. The worst part was what his and Lyra's Pokémon kept echoing spitefully.

_Your fault…_

He involuntarily shivered, remembering the pure, raw hatred that had been turned on him by even his own Meganium.

_Your fault…_

What if… what if in the future, he did something that caused such terrible aftershocks? What if, ultimately, it _was_ his fault?

Haunted by this terrifying possibility, he dug his hands into his scarlet hair, unable to get it out of his mind.

For several frenzied minutes, he shifted and turned on the bed, attempting to block out the thought, but not succeeding.

But suddenly, something came, unbidden, into his mind that shone through the darkness of his dreams.

_A warm smile that rivaled the sun. Bright cinnamon eyes. A brief hug. And four words._

"_I missed you, too."_

His dreams swept away, his fears quelled, his mercury eyes drifted closed, and he was peacefully asleep in moments.

**(~)  
So, yeah. I said it was going to be short. So far, it's my shortest chapter. Bleh.  
Been kinda busy. Art class and Writing class take it outta me. I usually can only work on this during weekends. And I wanted to get this piece out ASAP.  
As for SSshipping recommendations, here they are:  
"Pearls" by Lux-9 (as always)  
"Search for Destiny Path" by MarchenHope. Just started this one, but it looks good.  
"Silver's Story" by crackingvoices**

**Fang the Feraligatr wants you to review, comment, and criticize. Rawr.**

**Later! ~Meta-Akira**


	8. Sunray

**(~)  
Hurr, sorry for the long wait! A lot's been going on! My eighteenth birthday was on the 11th, and I've been doing a lot of college work. Sorry for the delay and I hope you understand! A bit of a warning, this next chapter's a bit long!  
Thanks to AikoAkahana for the lovely review! Keep 'em coming guys! ^^  
I don't own the characters of HG and SS!  
As usual, read, enjoy, and review!  
(~)**

Morning came soon. Sunlight filtered in through the blinds that had been shuttered over the window. Yet, as everyone has surely experienced at some point in their life, one ray of sunshine managed to squirm through a gap, hitting Silver square in the face.

He grunted, shifting so that he was no longer blinded by the accurate beam of light. He lay still for several, then sat up with a sigh. He felt irritated at that little ray of sunlight. The blinds had kept back all the others, but that particular one had seemed determined to pierce the defense to get to him and bring on his wake up call. If not for that one little sunray, he could have still been sleeping, ignorant to the world around him. That one bold little sunray.

He groaned drowsily as he rolled out of bed, his back popping as he stretched. It was early, he noted, glancing at the clock. Just after dawn. Despite him definitely not being what you would call a "morning person", he woke up early anyways. Force of habit. It was quiet, and that was his preference. He changed into his normal, day-time attire, and grabbed his bag.

As he opened the door, he remembered with a jolt. He was in the Azalea Town Pokémon Center. With Lyra. The person he had to protect from some oncoming, obscure danger. Lovely.

Well, at least it offered a change of pace.

Shuffling down the silent hall- the other occupants must've still been asleep –he quietly stalked into the lobby. Nurse Joy wasn't at the counter, so he figured she must be in the back, tending to some other trainer's Pokémon.

He quietly passed through the automatic glass doors. As they slid closed silently behind him, he gazed out at the still-sleeping town of Azalea.

The sun hadn't managed to climb very far into the sky yet. The only activity he saw in the dawn hours was a trail of smoke curling from the chimney of the nearby charcoal house. Besides that, only pinkish blobs of prone Slowpoke were heaped here and there, sleeping soundly- not even a drawling yawn punctuated the quiet.

It was odd for him. This was usually the point where he would release Crobat and ride the four-winged creature due north-east for several hours. To Indigo Plateau. It was his standard procedure. To not be doing so felt… out of place. As if he was wasting time.

Instead, he tried to put his mind on other things. His mercury eyes alighted on the sunrise. Huh. He didn't often notice it. He would usually be at an altitude of several hundred feet, trying to block out the howl of wind and already beginning to plot out his week's schedule and possible new battle tactics.

With a light sigh, he heard a rustle, and a few leaves tumbled from the tree beside the Pokémon Center.

_What the…_

"Silver, is that you?"

He blinked, shifting around to look up into the tree. Through the screen of branches, he caught a glimpse of a girl sitting calmly on a particularly thick branch, back resting against the trunk. One leg dangled off, the other was pulled up to her chest.

Of course. Why wouldn't she be the only other being awake at this time? She was like that darned little sunray that had so rudely awakened Silver minutes ago.

"Yeah, it's me," he mumbled out, sounding indifferent.

"Come on up!"

"Huh?"

"Come on," she repeated, patting the branch she sat on. She smiled brightly down at him, cinnamon eyes glowing in the sunrise. Silver quickly glanced away from her, towards the ground, feeling that weird shudder inside of him.

_Sunray…_

"Silver?"

"No. I'd rather not," he finally responded coolly, crossing his arms. He inwardly flinched as he practically felt her smile fade.

"Oh, alright then…"

Instead of climbing up, he sat down, directly beneath her, back against the tree trunk. There was silence for a painfully long time.

"What are you doing up there, anyways?" Silver shot at her.

"Watching the sunrise," she replied simply. "Early morning's really nice and peaceful. And being up here lets me think."

_Weird girl…_

"I thought you'd be gone by now."

Silver had to keep himself from looking up at her incredulously. Instead, he stayed quiet.

"You know, I thought you would have left for the Plateau," she elaborated.

"I think it's time for a change," Silver responded flatly. "Got a problem with it?"

"No, of course not."

Silence for a bit longer.

"Why?"

Silver sighed, shifting against the rough bark of the tree. "I don't seem to be getting better at the rate I was hoping. Maybe Dragon's Den and the Plateau aren't the best places. There's lots of tougher challenges out there."

"Improvement takes time. You can't get better overnight," Lyra commented gently.

"You do," Silver blurted. He didn't know what compelled him to spit out those two words. Was it respect? Curiosity? Resentment?

He couldn't see her, but she blinked in surprise. Despite the small bite in the words, she was thrown by the fact that it also sounded like a compliment. But before she could reenter the conversation, Silver continued.

"You come back from wherever you go to, and each time, you are even stronger than before," he explained. "I keep a tight training schedule, but every time I see you, I feel like I'm not moving forward at all. Or worse- I'm going backwards."

Lyra looked down at him, mouth agape in shock. He almost sounded angry.

"Silver, you shouldn't say that! You have been improving. Really!"

"Right," Silver said shortly. "I don't want to speak about it anymore."

Lyra reluctantly obliged, letting go of the topic. She noticed after a while that Silver didn't initiate conversation with her again. She glanced down to see Silver below, gazing determinedly ahead. He looked a bit like he used to, when he was always mad at the world- and her.

"Silver? You're not… mad at me, are you?"

She heard him sigh. She almost didn't hear him mumble, "No".

The silence reigned again as the sun inched upwards. Both trainers allowed it to pervade the area. For a time, at least.

But, inevitably, Lyra started talking.

"I'm going to be leaving Azalea soon," Lyra said casually. Silver remained silent, as if he didn't care, but he was listening intently, trying to get a clue on where she would go and how soon an attack from RP- whoever that was –could be expected. "I like to travel around, yunno? Fang and I… Well, I think I'm going to be doing some one-on-one stuff with him soon. Get to really know our battling style. Just for a while. Kind of like how I started out. Me 'n' him. I have a couple of my other Pokémon with me right now. Rapier, Fia, Garnet, Pitfall, Somni. My regular crew, I guess. But I want to get back to basics."

Silver recognized each of the names Lyra relayed to him. She insisted on nicknaming all of her Pokémon. It took him a moment to remember who "Somni" was, as she was the latest addition of Lyra's regular team. She'd only captured the creature in Kanto, and Silver had seen the Pokémon put into action when he had watched his rival make her way- again –through the Elite Four.

But Silver remembered that his future self had told him that Lyra would be heading off with only Fang for a little private training. As if the creature could get even more outrageously powerful. Well, he had been told that apparently, the Feraligatr could definitely get even better. In the future, the hulking creature would be able to wipe the floor with not only Meganium, but his whole team. He scowled briefly at the thought, again bringing up the fact that he couldn't even keep the pace with Lyra, let alone catch up.

It frustrated him to no end.

"Silver?"

He was jerked out of his sullen thoughts by her quiet voice.

"What?" He almost stated the word, instead of asking.

"I was… well, I was kinda wondering if maybe…"

"Maybe _what_?"

"Maybe you could travel with me for a bit?"

He did a double-take, as she gracefully clambered down from her perch amongst the branches.

"_What?_"

"Well," Lyra continued once she had both feet firmly planted on the ground. She turned to look at him with those bright, cinnamon eyes. "You said that you wanted a change. How would you like to come with me for a bit? If you want to, that is."

Silver was dumbfounded. For a minute, he just looked at her. He felt the urge to blurt out a yes, but he held back.

"I'll think about it," he finally said brusquely and dismissively, turning his head to look away.

For a painfully long while, nothing happened. He almost thought that she had left him alone to return to the Pokémon Center. He wouldn't be surprised if she had.

But then…

"You know, Silver… If there's anything bothering you, you can tell me. I don't mind. You can always talk to me. It's what friends do."

After hearing those words softly spoken, he glanced over at her. He was surprised to see her smiling kindly at him. It was a gentler smile than usual, and the same phenomenon as last night- a peculiarly sporadic heart rate –preoccupied the red-headed teenager with confusion. Before he could manage a response, she turned and quietly left for the red-roofed building.

o0O0o0O0o

Several hours had passed. Silver had continued to sit, back against the tree, nearby the Pokémon Center. He silently mulled over things as the small town began to stir and show signs of life.

Surprisingly, the Slowpoke were what awakened first. Even though they hardly budged, Silver could feel the dull eyes coming from several pink blobs on him. Their wide-eyed, vacant stare caused him to wonder again why exactly the people of Azalea adored these Pokémon, who seemed to have little more than cobwebs cluttering their skulls.

Oh, yeah. Some legend about one of the lazy pink wonders supposedly ending a drought with its _yawn._

Honestly, Silver couldn't think of anything more… lackluster and idiotic. But to each his own, he supposed.

As he tried to ignore the annoyingly dim blobs, he glanced towards the entrance to the city. Just off in the distance, he could make out the Slowpoke Well. He glared as he recalled that it had been _there_ that Team Rocket had first reared their imbecilic heads in Johto. His mouth twisted in a snarl, wishing he could have been the personal welcoming committee for that band of cowards.

But he hadn't.

Lyra had.

And he remembered that it had been that which had been the icing on the cake.

(~(~(_Flashback_)~)~)

He was angry. He was very angry. He had glimpsed those black-clothed idiots making their getaway as he made his way into Azalea Town.

Rage filled his metallic eyes at the mere sight of them. He had wanted to chase after them, beat them to a fine pulp. But he decided to get answers instead.

Roaming around the town, he couldn't help but notice tons of idiotic pink Pokémon that stared dolefully at him.  
"What are you looking at?" he snarled to one. It merely yawned, dull and drawn-out.

"…"

"What kinda moron would want one of those Pokémon?" he grumbled to himself. "They look like idiotic catastrophes. Could probably give a Magikarp a run for its money."

Doing his best to ignore the Slowpoke, though he did shoot each one he saw a cold glare, he made his way unobtrusively through town. He kept a sharp ear for anything that mentioned the Rockets. It was what he did best: sneak around and eavesdrop.

A few hours later, and he was somewhat rewarded for his scrounging for information.

He'd learned that the Rockets had invaded the town, blocking the gym. They had taken the Slowpoke (_why the hell would they take such dumb creatures?_), and they had overrun the Well just outside the town's limits.

But something he had just heard had grabbed his attention. A girl had run them out of town. With a white hat. Now why did that remind him of a headache?

He was deep in frustrated thought, almost ready to kick one of those brainless Slowpoke, when he saw someone. Someone who he recognized immediately. He ground his teeth.

_Great. Not her, of all people._

He froze, eyes widening.

_Wait, white hat? Didn't the people mention-? No way. No. Way._

The people around here were idiots. They couldn't possibly have been referring to _her._ But… he smirked. She would be an excellent way to siphon off his frustration.

His hand hovered at his belt, where two pokeballs had joined the one belonging to his pansy of a starter. They were intimidating. He would win this time.

She was about to go through the building that separated Azalea from the forest beyond. Oh no, he wouldn't let her get away that easily.

"Hold it!" He yelled sharply.

She halted in her tracks, and turned to face him, her face filled with confusion. Beside her was a familiar, yet exotic blue Pokémon. Right. Her _beloved Totodile_ must've evolved.

"Oh, Silver," she finally said, before her face split into a kind smile of recognition. "Hi!"

_Why the heck does she look happy to see me, dammit?I'll wipe that smile off her face once I take her down._

"How are y-"

"Tell me," he said, rudely interrupting her question. "Is it true that Team Rocket's back?"

Her smile faded somewhat. "Yes… I'm afraid so. They took over the Slowpoke Well, and I went and stopped them. They were-"

"Whoah, wait a sec. _You_ stopped them?" he snapped, anger flashing across his face. "Quit lying."

She shook her head, her smile having faded even more. This puzzled him, but his outrage outweighed it. They were weaklings, but there was no way she could have taken them out single-handedly. No way!

"I'm not lying. You see, they-"

"You're gonna have to prove that," he snarled, picking a pokeball off of his belt.

"You're mad," she noticed quietly.

"Send out your Pokémon," he shouted edgily.

Determination crossed her face, and she followed suit, grabbing one pokeball off of her belt.

He threw his capsule first, and Gastly came out.

Silver smirked grimly, expecting her to cringe in fear of his Ghost-type, but she did nothing of the sort.

"C'mon out, Rapier!"

_Rapier?_ He thought scathingly, as a Beedrill exploded out of its pokeball. _A Beedrill? Seriously? Doesn't she know that Bug-types are the weakest type?_

Whatever. It would be her loss.

The Beedrill wasn't like other Beedrill. Instead of looking enraged, it calmly hovered over the ground, in a relaxed fighting stance.

"Gastly, let's go! Take down that flimsy bug with your Lick!"

Gastly floated over towards the passive Beedrill, sticking out its tongue to give the Pokémon a paralyzing lick.

However, the Beedrill quickly backwinged, dodging around the attack. The thing was pretty quick.

"Rapier, use your Focus Energy!"

The Beedrill relaxed again, letting go of all tension. Now was Silver's chance.

"Get it now, Gastly!"

Gastly flew in again and managed to land a Lick attack. But the Beedrill barely noticed it.

"Now, Rapier, use your Twineedle!"

Rapier switched to the offensive, jabbing the ethereal Pokémon with the lance-like stingers attached to its forearms.

Luckily, they did little damage.

"Hah, that the best you can do? Gastly, use Curse."

Gastly grimaced as it halved its own HP, laying a curse on the Beedrill. It winced from the pain, but Silver paid no attention to it.

Rapier also winced as he felt the effects of the hex. Lyra, not looking deterred, called for him to use Pursuit.

_Uh oh…_

Had Silver known that her Beedrill was advanced enough to know that move, he would have perhaps thought twice about using Curse. Flying at the Ghost-type, Rapier slashed him with a dark energy, sapping Gastly of his remaining power and causing him to faint.

Holding back a snarl, Silver recalled his Pokémon in disgust. He sent out his next Pokémon.

"Go Zubat!"

"Rapier, take a rest," Lyra called, returning her Beedrill after noticing how badly Cure was affecting him. "Thanks, you did a good job."

Silver snorted as she chose her next Pokémon. "Get ready, Fia!"

_God, does this girl nickname everything she comes in contact with?_

A Spearow was his opponent, this time. The little bird Pokémon blinked her bright black eyes at the bat. Like the Beedrill before her, she didn't seem as aggressive as the rest of her species tended to be.

"Zubat, use your Bite!"

"Counter it with your Fury Attack, Fia!"

The bold little Spearow met the Zubat midair, both scrambling to gain the advantage. But soon, Silver's Zubat was driven back from the repetitive scratching and pecking from the Fury Attack.

"Useless thing. Get around behind it and use Bite!"

Zubat obliged, managing to outmaneuver Spearow and clamp his fangs onto her wing.

"Now use Leech Life!"

Still attached to Spearow's wing, Zubat started to suck energy from his adversary.

"Fia, use your Aerial Ace to get loose!"

Fia shot forwards, almost slicing through the air. The unexpected motion and speed caused Zubat to let go in surprise.

"Now turn and give him another Aerial Ace!"

Her accuracy dead-on, Zubat was struck, and fell to the ground in a heap.

Silver ground his teeth as he returned the fainted Zubat. Wonderful. Great. Brilliant.

"Go… Bayleef," he said lowly.

His final Pokémon took shape. And Lyra's face lit up with recognition.

"Bay?"

Bayleef looked around. Spotting Lyra, he disregarded the fact that Silver had called him out to battle. He ran over to Lyra nuzzling the trainer happily and waving his spicy-smelling leaf in her face, remembering her kind words from his first battle.

It was all Silver could do to keep from smacking his face with his palm.

"Aw, you evolved! You look so big and strong, Bayleef!" Lyra complimented with a cheerful smile.

"Bay, bay!"

"Get over here, you enormous pansy! I called you out to battle, not to act like a softy!" Silver yelled at his starter in aggravation. Bayleef slumped sheepishly, and made his way back over to his trainer.  
"Alrighty, then! Fia, return, you did an awesome job! Let's get out there, Fang!"

Her Croconaw growled affirmatively, eagerly taking his position in front of Silver's Bayleef. Fang grinned impishly at the grass-type, ready for anything.

"Bayleef show that lizard who's stronger with a Razor Leaf!"  
"Fang, show them your speed and use your Water Gun to strike 'em down!"

Silver scoffed, but blinked in amazement when the Croconaw, as quick as he was when he was a Totodile, began to alternate between dodging the sharp leaves and shooting them back with a spurt of Water Gun. Aside for the occasional grazing of one leaf, he endured the attack largely unscathed.

"Now go in with Rage!"

Eyes flashing, Fang ran at Bayleef, doing some slight damage before bouncing back. Silver, remembering Lyra's technique, growled and switched tactics.

"Fine! If that won't work, use your PoisonPowder!"

Bayleef spun his leaf, sending purple spores at Fang. Once again, Fang managed to dodge the attack. Silver was getting angrier.

"Let's test out his defense, eh, Fang? Go in for a Bite!"

In the blink of an eye, the Croconaw was beside Bayleef, and he jumped to clamp his jaws onto the back of his neck.

"Slow it up with another PoisonPowder, Bayleef. Make him let go!"

With a spin of Bayleef's leaf, purple dust was scattered again over Fang. Unfortunately for the Croconaw, there was no escaping inhaling the noxious stuff at such close range. Immediately, he looked more fatigued, but he clung on determinedly with his Bite. Bayleef winced when there was no reprieve from the literal pain in his neck.

"Ugh, Bayleef use your Synthesize," Silver snarled.

However, as Bayleef's ring of leaves around his neck began to glow to receive energy, Lyra interrupted.

"Now, Fang! Use your Ice Fang!"

Silver blanched when the Croconaw's mouth glowed a freezing blue, clamping down harder. Bayleef squirmed in panic as the attack doubled in effectiveness, forgetting about using Synthesize and instead trying to dislodge the frozen fangs.

"Razor Leaf! Get it when it's too close to dodge!"

Yet again, Lyra interrupted Bayleef as he was summoning his attack.

"Fang, release and use Water Gun to escape. Full power!"

Wincing from the poison, Fang let go and blasted his most powerful Water Gun at Bayleef. The force of the attack propelled Fang backwards towards safety, while the attack brought down Bayleef.

The grass-type hit the ground, tired out.

Silver almost hit the ceiling. Teeth clenched, he seethed as Lyra predictably gave her Croconaw a hug, still managing to sweep him up despite how much bigger he'd gotten since his evolution.

She ruffled around one-handedly in her bag, pulling out a pink berry that he vaguely recognized to be a Pecha. She gave the healing treat to Fang, who perked up once his body was free of the poisoning.

She walked towards him, kneeling down to give his exhausted Bayleef a one-armed hug around his neck. She looked up at Silver, setting Fang down. She saw his thunderous expression, and she didn't look nearly as cheery.

"You are mad," she said again. Silver had to restrain himself from shouting at this girl who had bested him, twice. "Why?"

_Why? WHY? Of all the idiotic questions!_

"Why do _you_ care?" he spat, glaring at her.

She just continued to look at him, stroking Bayleef with one hand and Fang with the other. Without an answer, Silver forgot about trying to blow off her question and words flooded out of his mouth.

"I _hate_ weak things. Pokémon, trainers," he ranted, throwing a leer to Lyra and the two Pokémon on the ground. "Doesn't matter what they are. I hate them. I want nothing to do with them. And that goes for Team Rocket, as well! Hanging around, trying to intimidate people with sheer numbers! And how is it that _you_ drove them out? Trying to be a hero? Going for glory? Trying to look stronger than you are? Just like they do?"

Lyra's smile was gone. In its place was sadness. Silver actually stopped his tirade. He'd never seen the girl without a cheerful demeanor.

Lyra looked down, some tears in her eyes. Silver was really surprised now. He had previously wanted to see her break down. He had relished the thought of breaking her spirit. He thought that to see her upset would be extremely satisfying. But… it wasn't.

It felt… low.

"Silver," she started. Despite the tears, her voice was even. "Do you know why I went after Team Rocket? You see the Slowpoke?"

Silver was about to respond with a snarky, 'Of course I've seen them, the moronic lumps are _everywhere_. How could I _not_ see them?' But something in her voice kept him from doing so.

Lyra gently pulled a fourth pokeball from her belt. She cradled the thing in her hands before pushing the button, muttering, "Come out, Votum."

In a flash, a Slowpoke was sitting there, looking up at Lyra dolefully, but with a very subtle hint of affection. Silver scorned the fact that she caught one of the useless things, but before he could make a comment, Lyra spoke again.

"Did you notice something about the Slowpoke, Silver?"

"That they are insanely unintelligent?" he took a stab, crossing his arms with impatience.

Lyra shook her head solemnly. "Their _tails_, Silver."

"What tail-?" he stopped mid-question. His mercury eyes widened when he realized they, indeed, were supposed to have tails. But none, including this one, did.

Lyra gently moved her Slowpoke around so Silver could see. He almost shivered when he saw a load of bandages tightly wrapped around the stump. The white cloth was already stained dark red in some spots.

"Team Rocket had stolen all of the Slowpoke in Azalea, as well as rounding the ones up in the Well. They were cutting off their tails to sell for high price," her voice trembled for a second before she continued on, fortified. "That's why I had to stop them. For the sake of the Slowpoke. They might not feel the bite of a fish for a few seconds, but there's no way that they couldn't notice the pain of losing their tails."

She gathered her Slowpoke, Votum, up in a hug. "I found Votum once I got into the well. He was trying to get help. He led me to the Rockets, and I decided to take care of him since he had no trainer."

Silver severely doubted that the Slowpoke had it in him to do something that smart, but he made no comment.

Lyra wiped away her tears, summoning up a brave smile. "You know what 'Votum' means? It's Latin for a hope, vow, prayer, or wish. No matter what, I know things will get better for the Slowpoke here. Their tails will grow back soon. They won't be in pain forever. Things will return to normal."

Silver blinked, astounded that she had just turned things around to make it optimistic again. How could she have found any sort of hope in all of this? The world was a dismal place, and she gleaned some good out of the bad.

Lyra muttered some praises to Bayleef, who had woken up after she fed him an Oran Berry. She stood up, dusting off her overall shorts, and returned Votum to his pokeball.

"Bye, Bayleef. Bye, Silver," she said, cheerful again. With a smile, she turned to leave, Fang at her heels. "See you again soon!"

And she was gone, leaving Silver with his confused musings of how it was possible that she could find some way to smile in these situations. Why was she so happy, when he was full of anger and bitterness?

He slowly returned Bayleef and trudged back towards the Pokémon Center.

(~(~(_End_ _Flashback_)~)~)

Silver stood up, looking back at the Pokémon Center. Now that he thought about it, shewas _exactly_ like that little sunray. Though annoying sometimes, she remained bright and optimistic, waking him up from the dark world. Whether he wanted to or not.

He left his spot, entering the Pokémon Center. Lyra was at the counter, her bag packed, receiving the pokeballs from Nurse Joy.

"Your Pokémon are all healed. Please have a nice day!"

"Thank you, ma'am. You too," Lyra replied.

As she plucked the pokeballs off of the tray and attached them on her belt, Silver approached her, almost nervous.

"Lyra?"

"Oh, hey Silver," she smiled. "Your Pokémon are all good, too. Here!"

She handed him the other pokeballs in the tray. Taking them with a nod, he steeled himself.

"I'm… sorry for sounding for sounding like a jerk earlier."

"It's okay, Silver," Lyra said, tilting her head. "You have nothing to apologize for."

_If that's true, then that also means that Swinub must be able to fly._

"And…"

"Yes, Silver?"

"I'm… coming with you."

**(~)**  
**Well? Like it? Hate it? Think I made the characters too OOC?  
Please tell me. I want to know. Also, Votum will make a reappearance later. Should he be a Slowbro or a Slowking? You guys decide!  
Fang the Feraligatr wants your comments and criticisms. Rawr.  
Later! ~Meta-Akira  
(~)**


	9. Chat

**(~)  
Hey everyone! Been busy with college stuff! Dressing up as a Masquerade Ball Dancer for my dorm's Halloween Party/Dance. I'm gonna be all decked out in purple and black, with black wings and a black mask. ^^  
Anyways, thanks go out to Mew Cinda for reviewing, and all the wonderful people who favorite/alerted this story!  
And tremendous thanks and hugs are sent out to Lil Enchantress, who gave me a FANTASTIC review and tons of support! This chapter is dedicated to you! ;D**

**I do not own the characters of HG and SS.**

**As always, read, enjoy, and review!  
(~)**

The next thing he knew, two arms were clamped resolutely around his middle, and he was having difficulty breathing properly.

The strange thing was, Lyra's hug wasn't tight enough to restrict airflow.

So why were his lungs seizing up, causing him to sputter?

"L-Lyra, let go!"

"You're really coming?"

"I said I was, didn't I?" Silver asked in an annoyed tone, more so to cover up the nervous spasm in his breathing pattern.

"Yes, well," Lyra finally released him, straightening up and looking slightly apologetic. "I didn't think you would want to."

Silver smoothed his jacket in an irritable manner, trying to appear his usual, indifferent self.

"On one condition," he stated, and he noticed that Lyra sent a puzzled look in his direction. "Well, two actually. Bring your team, not just Fang."

"Why?"

"Because," Silver lied on the spot, quite believably. After all, before Lyra had really gotten to him, it was how he had managed to scrape by for several years. "I want to see how you train with them, too. Then maybe I can exploit some of their weaknesses for future battles."

Lyra chuckled, then cocked her head to the side. "And the second condition?"

o0O0o0O0o

"I can't believe you remembered!"

"You still on about that?" Silver asked, exasperated. He was beginning to regret proposing that one condition to their traveling agreement.

"Well, you always seemed a bit annoyed with him, that's all," Lyra piped up cheerfully, turning to face him so that she was walking backwards down the trail.

"Would you cut that out? You're going to trip over something," Silver protested flatly.

"Why would it matter to you?" she asked with a shrug.

"I don't want to start things off with a concussion," he grumbled.

She shrugged again, continuing to walk backwards, Fang at her side. The Feraligatr kept an eye on where the pigtailed teenager was going to make sure she wouldn't run into a tree, but he seemed so lax about it that Silver concluded that this girl must walk backwards a lot.

She was strange.

"So," Silver started slowly, trying to ignore Lyra's unusual walking habit. "Where are we going first?"

She came to a stop, lifting a hand to her chin thoughtfully. As she stood, she placed all of her weight on one leg, the other foot lifting off the ground and resting on her other knee. It was something she often did when she stood around. Another quirk that was a part of the enigma that was Lyra.

"You know, I'm not too sure. I was thinking about going to the cliffs on Cianwood. Nearby the Safari Zone. That's one of my usual training hotspots. There are quite a few places there to find good, strong Pokémon, and it has a waterfall to work on Garnet's strength. But, now that you are here, I think that we should go somewhere else."

"Like?"

"Not sure yet."

Silver grunted in reply. Lyra put an end to standing on one foot and resumed walking.

"Oh! Since I just made that exchange, we should go to the Dark Cave," Lyra came up with after a few minutes of aimless walking.

Silver paused, remembering the place. He had caught Crobat there when he was just a Zubat.

An aptly named place. Who was the Captain Obvious who came up with it?

"Why there?"

"It's an interesting place," Lyra mused. "And it has a few interesting Pokémon that are hard to find elsewhere."

This piqued Silver's interest. He had only briefly been in Dark Cave, enough to find and catch a Zubat and leave. It didn't lead anywhere he wanted to go, so he never checked it out any further. He wasn't looking to replace his teammates, but it would be nice to catch a strong Pokémon.

"Fine by me," he stated.

Lyra seemed pleased that they had a destination in mind. She and Silver came to a stop, and Silver blinked, suddenly feeling slight apprehension.

Lyra, only after a second's pause, had already slipped inside the mouth of the rocky cavern pass, only to come to a halt when she realized that Silver wasn't following. She poked her head back out to look at him, confused and concerned.

"Silver, you alright?"

Silver jerked out of his trance. He shook his head to clear it.

"I'm fine," he insisted coolly, following her into Union Cave.

He tried not to think about his time counterpart's story involving the otherwise plain subterranean passage. He suppressed a shudder when it crossed his mind.

"You know, I think it's lovely in here. The underwater lakes, and the stalagmites and stalactites. It's peaceful," she chattered quietly. "And the Lapras that come here once a week are so beautiful."

"Lapras come here?" Silver asked in surprise. Inside a cave was not a place he'd expect to find the rare seafaring creatures.

"Yes, at the lowest level of the cave, there's a lake. Unlike these," she waved her hand at a cool freshwater spring, "It's made of saltwater. I think there must be some sort of tunnel underground that connects it to the ocean. For some reason, they only come to that lake on Fridays. I found that out when I went down there several times to train."

"Where _don't_ you go to train?' he asked her.

Lyra chuckled again. "I go wherever I can. I look really hard to secluded areas where other people don't usually go. It means fewer interruptions and there's likely to be more Pokémon there," she sighed happily. "They_ are_ amazing creatures. Very gentle and incredibly beautiful."

As Lyra talked, it helped to distract Silver from the ugly possibilities of the future. He never did talk much, and it was always around Lyra that he spoke more than a few sentences. Either way, he was grateful that she kept his attention from less pleasant matters, whether she knew it or not.

"Have you ever seen a Lapras, Silver?"

He nodded slowly. In actuality, he had seen one once, a long time ago. Before Team Rocket had fallen the first time.

"Yeah," he said grimly. "When I was a little kid. I saw members of Team Rocket drag one in, beaten and bloody. Every time it cried, they'd hit it again. They had brought it in to present to my… to sell for monetary gain."

He had almost said_ father._ He gritted his teeth. He didn't want Lyra to know. He'd had enough of the wide-eyed stares, badly concealed whispers, and cringes when he was a kid. He didn't want any of that from her. He didn't want to throw another reason at her of why she should refuse to be his friend. He didn't want her to walk away, disgusted with him and his heritage.

And what he said _had_ been the truth. Those grunt scum had brought the injured and forcibly captured Lapras to his _father_ for money. Lapras were rare and highly prized. He was quite sure the creature had been quickly snatched up in exchange for a large sum of money at some black market his _father_ ran.

Lyra had covered her mouth with one hand. She seemed to have a vague recognition spark in her eyes, but that was overwhelmed by shocked sorrow. Fang growled, yellow eyes flashing angrily at such a thing. Meganium shifted, also looking somewhat upset.

"How old were you when you saw that?" She whispered from behind her hand.

"Six. It was a long time ago," he mumbled, crossing his arms and continuing on his trek. Eleven years. But it was sharp as a fragment of glass in his mind.

He didn't often care to remember it, but it was always there.

"I'm sorry," she said sincerely, removing her hand from her mouth. Silver shrugged indifferently, though inside he was feeling a deep, bitter resentment.

Truthfully, at that time, he had still been an innocent sort of child, influenced by his kind mother's values even though she had already died by that point. He had tried to help the Lapras by sneaking in and attempting to feed it, but he had been caught and shouted at soundly by his_ father_ for daring to help a weak Pokémon that was good for nothing more than money and battling. And it had been that event that led to his _father_ lecturing him often to try to reshape Silver into a future Team Rocket member with Team Rocket ideals.

Ultimately, that had failed. Well, the first half of it, anyways. The more bitter years he spent with his _father_, the more he came to loathe the organization of Team Rocket.

_But he did make me like him. Ideal-wise,_ Silver growled to himself. He hated that. He hated that his_ father _had bent his thoughts to try to match his own. As much as he despised it, it was the truth. Silver had become very much like that man.

_At least I _was_, until…_

He glanced over at Lyra, who was walking beside him. She looked as deep in thought as he had been. He felt a strange dismay that she continued to look saddened.

For a long while, they walked in silence. Silver occasionally glanced over at Lyra, who still seemed to be mulling over things in her mind unhappily. It was rather unsettling for him.

Fang and Meganium were also quite silent, though the way they kept looking at each other suggested that they were mutually wondering what their trainers were thinking about.

It was with relief that Silver saw the exit to the rocky cave as they had turned a corner.

Sunlight washed over them as they left the craggy pathway behind and continued on their walk to Violet City.

Silver was glad to leave the cave behind. It now held a slight feeling of foreboding with him, as did Mount Mortar. He rather doubted he'd ever pay a visit to that place now. Not with the future's possibilities hanging like a thundercloud over him.

o0O0o0O0o

The day continued to drag on as the duo, and their Pokémon, walked. Lyra visibly brightened after a while, especially since they had started to pass people that she was evidently familiar with.

She stopped to chat constantly with the "regulars" to this area. Fishermen, kids, it didn't matter. Silver hung back whenever she stopped to talk. He wasn't "social" like she was. He was content to wait it out. He couldn't help but feel a little better as she progressively looked more cheerful with each chat. He watched her eyes light up with happy recognition each time she paused, and her smile was almost contagious.

Several times he caught himself smiling slightly when she would laugh at a joke one of the area's trainers told her. It was a nice laugh, not annoyingly squeaky or incredibly loud. It was light and bouncy, and it suited her.

Closer towards Violet City, Lyra burst into a wide smile as she shouted, "Liz!"

A girl, a few years younger than Lyra, was up ahead, sitting on a patch of grass. A picnic basket was out, and the girl was chatting away on a cell phone, A Nidorina curled up in her lap.

Her eyes widened in confusion as she heard her name. When she looked round and saw Lyra, she sported a grin identical to hers. She muttered something into the cell phone and hung up. The Nidorina leapt off of her lap gracefully and Liz stood up. The girls embraced with happy squeals that made Silver flinch.

_Yikes. I bet the Zubat in Union Cave heard that…_

"Lyra! It's been too long!" Liz exclaimed as she let the pigtailed girl go. Lyra nodded enthusiastically. "How've ya been, girl?"

"Excellent," Lyra responded. "You?"

Liz looked happily smug. "Well, I've been just peachy! Me and my lovely _Nidorina_ have been doing a lot of training lately."

The obvious stress on the word "Nidorina" was meant to attract attention to the powder blue Poison-type. Lyra's eyes and smile widened further.

"Liz, she evolved! That's wonderful!"

"Oh, yeah! I was gonna call you about it, but I had to get back to Gina and Dana. And then I had to make a call to Joey," Liz flushed a slight pink. "And once we get talking, we tend go on and on…"

_I have the feeling this girl could go on and on with anyone. How hefty is that phone bill, I wonder?_

"How long has she been a Nidorina?"

"Oh, she just evolved yesterday after we started to…"

Silver began tuning the girl, Liz, out. She was more of a chatterbox than Lyra. Lyra could hardly get a word in edgewise with this kid. She had started ranting and raving over how positively wonderful she thought her Nidorina was, and Lyra was left to nod and occasionally interject with a word or two whenever Liz stopped yammering long enough to inhale much-needed oxygen.

"…She would be fit for any contest. She'd wipe the floor with the other contestants in the Cuteness or Beauty category…"

Silver's mind wandered. It was great that Lyra didn't look so glum anymore. Though why she had looked glum in the first place had been a mystery to him. Was it all from him mentioning that Lapras? It seemed like there was more to it than that. She had appeared to be thinking about something that evidently had been weighing on her mind.

"…I mean, she's so fit, she could probably win the Pokeathlon…"

Bemused, he cast his thoughts to other things. He most certainly couldn't tell her of his little… adventure with Celebi. He definitely didn't want to do that. It would sound crazy, and it would definitely upset her, scare her.

He didn't want her to go through that. Definitely not. He didn't like to see her upset. It was strange.

But…

No, it was probably for the best that she didn't hear about his journey, her future death at the hands of the mysterious RP…

"…And that's why I totally think that Nidorina and I could dominate Bugsy in Azalea Town! Whaddaya think, Lyra?"

"If you think so, then definitely go for it," Lyra said earnestly.

"Well, hey! Whatever we do, I'll be proud of her, no matter what!" Liz pulled her Nidorina into a hug. Then she glanced up at Silver, as if only just noticing he was there. Which, she had.

"So Lyra, enough about me and Nidorina, who's your boyfriend?"

Silver's attention suddenly snapped back onto the picnicker girl.

_Wh-WHAT?_

Silver felt his face flush slightly, something that _never_ happened to him. He was fortunate in the fact that Lyra's back was turned to him and Liz was focused on Lyra, so neither of the girls noticed as he bewilderedly turned to hide his face, crossing his arms and taking up his "indifferent" pose as he stared off into the sky, thinking furiously. He was oblivious to Meganium's smirk.

_What the hell just happened?_

Lyra stared at Liz, but then she laughed. "Silver? Oh, Silver's not my boyfriend. We're rivals and really good friends, though."

Silver again felt that shiver as her words echoed through his mind.

_Really good friends…_

_She thinks that about me? We haven't known each other that long, and I was a jerk to her for a good portion of that time._

"Oh, whoops!" Liz amended with a childish giggle. "Sorry about that! I didn't know. Whatcha guys doing together, then?"

"We're traveling together and training for the time being," Lyra responded smoothly, waving away Liz's apology.

"Oh, okay! That sounds like fun!"

Liz glanced at her Pokegear, and her face turned to surprise.

"Oh, dangit. I have to get going. Mom'll kill me if I'm late for dinner. It was great to see you Lyra!"

"You too, Liz," Lyra said with a smile. The girl gathered up the empty picnic basket and took off down a different path, her beloved Nidorina scrambling right behind her.

"Wow, I didn't notice it was that late," Lyra said, glancing at her Pokegear as well. Dusk had already fallen, and they had spent close to an hour talking to- or at least being talked _at_ by- Liz.

A cool gust of autumn air rushed by and Lyra shivered.

"Come on, let's get going to we can make it to the Violet City Pokémon Center."

Lyra led the way, and Silver finally moved from his position, following after her.

"So… you're friends with her, huh?"

"Yeah," Lyra said with a knowing chuckle. "She talks a lot, but she's really nice."

"And she… er…"

"Oh, that? Don't worry about it. Liz is harmless; she often jumps to conclusions like that. She did the same when Ethan and I stopped to talk to her once."

Amazing what that one word did to Silver. He felt a twang of angry annoyance that had nothing to do with what had just transpired. He'd never really met the kid who was apparently Lyra's best childhood friend. He had no idea what the kid was like. And yet…

_I suddenly feel the need to punch something._

**(~)  
How didja like it? Threw in some of the "phone buddies". I'll see if I can stick Irwin in somewhere, for hilarity.**

**For suggestions, I suggest:  
"Pokémon Academy: Chronicles of OverAcheivers" by DittoGirl553. (My OC, Vi, is to be in it. Has anime pairings as well as SSshipping).  
"Lyra's Journey" by Ice Krystal**

**Fang the Feraligatr wants you to review. Rawr.**

**Later! ~Meta-Akira  
(~)**


	10. Falkner

**Hi, everybody! Akira here! I feel terrible about the long gap between this and my last chapter. Really. I've been busy with Thanksgiving and a bunch of stuff has preoccupied me. On top of all that, I made a little oversight early on in the chapter that resulted in me having to rewrite the rest of it. But I hope that this next chapter is worth the wait.  
Thanks go out to MarlinMarlen (who is also a great writer) for the review and to all of you who Favorited/Alerted this story! ^^  
Warning: Contains large amounts of Falkner Epicness!**

**I do not own the characters of HG SS. If I did... Well, I'll leave you to ponder the possibilities.**

**As always, read, enjoy, and review!**

**(~)  
**

"Come on, Silver," she called cheerfully over her shoulder as she walked out the door of the Pokémon Center and into the brisk morning air. She was already full of energy, and she seemed spurred on by the cloudless sky.

Her eyes swooped around, taking in the lovely buildings that made her think of generations past. The Sprout Tower swayed in the distance, towering over the quaint city and drawing the eye like a shifting beacon. It was a beautiful place, in her opinion. She smiled contentedly, Fang lumbering behind calmly.

Until she ran headlong into someone, resulting in her nearly falling backwards onto the ground.

"Hey! Watch it!"

She flinched at the sharp voice as the owner, a young man with a scruffle of dark brown hair, who was currently glaring at her with grey-green eyes. He was wearing baggy jeans and a worn grey hoodie. Evidently, he didn't seem to share her morning cheerfulness.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't really paying attention," she offered.

"Yeah, well you and your oversized lizard shouldn't walk if you can't handle it!" he shot back rudely.

Fang voiced a warning growl. He got a little tetchy when others showed disrespect to his kind master.

"Hush, Fang. Behave," Lyra whispered. He obliged, but still looked at the individual with dislike in his yellow eyes.

"Hey! You'd better watch your tone!" Came another voice, sounding threatening.

Lyra blinked and glanced over at the newest arrival. Silver had just finished packing his bag for their journey, and had just witnessed the problem. If Fang had flickering dislike in his eyes, Silver's were positively flaming with it. He stepped between Lyra and the guy.

The teenager glanced haughtily at Silver, as if sizing him up.

"If I don't? I suppose you'll act all tough to try to defend her, since she's a weakling-"

"_Don't_," Silver uttered dangerously, his eyes glinting, "call her a weakling. _Ever._ You hear me?"

"Or what?"

Silver was about to grab the front of the idiot's collar and answer his question with a closed fist.

"Is there a problem here?"

The argument ground to a halt at the sound of a rather authoritative voice. The group looked round to see a rather familiar face, or at least the half of the face that wasn't hidden behind a curtain of navy-blue hair. He was garbed in traditional clothes of blue and white, with a Hoothoot perched on one shoulder. He appeared to be about a year older than Silver, two older than Lyra.

Right now, his visible steely-blue eye was glaring firmly at the source of the trouble. The teen in the hoodie shifted slightly, uneasy under the Gym Leader's gaze.

"No…. sir. _She_ just wasn't watching where she was going," he attempted to explain.

"If I were you," Falkner said coolly, "I would pay more respect to someone who currently has a much higher standing than your own. Or don't you recognize the current Champion of Johto?"

The young man in the hoodie returned a rather surprised face to Lyra. He lowered his head resentfully, and reluctantly grumbled, "I apologize, Champion Soul. I did not realize who you were."

Silver could have throttled the smart-aleck, as he could definitely hear a trace of mockery in those mumbled words, though it was apparent that neither Lyra nor Falkner picked up on them as he had.

_That two-faced little piece of-_

Falkner merely jerked his head, dismissing the rude young man. With a sour look that only Silver caught, he slowly started to walk away.

"So," Falkner said, breaking the silence and sounding a lot less reproachful. "It's been a while since I've seen you here last, Lyra. Usually, we battle in the Fighting Dojo. What brings you to Violet City?"

" Well, I'm heading to Dark Cave for some training," Lyra responded brightly. "And Silver's decided to come along."

"Well, well, well," Falkner said, looking over at Silver now. Silver wasn't sure to gaze defiantly back or to look uninterested about the whole thing. "It's been a long time since our battle, Silver. Why don't the two of you come to the gym? I have some time before I need to get going."

Lyra nodded brightly in affirmation, and Silver had no choice but to follow the girl and the Gym Leader into the Violet City Gym. They took the elevator upwards. Meganium shifted in discomfort at the strange sensation, but Silver soothed him, placing a hand on his head. He'd been but a Chikorita- who resided, for the most part, in his pokeball –when Silver had last been here. So he wasn't used to elevators.

Lyra's eyes widened appreciatively as the doors opened, and she took in the sight of the old city laid out beneath her. The Sprout Tower swayed slowly off to the right, and a wind brushed by, rustling the leaves of the distant trees. The platform they stood on had grass growing on it, bushes and small trees surrounding the perimeter of the roof. There was a modest fountain that looked more like it was for use for the bird Pokémon, but it still made it look nice.

"It's lovely up here!" she exclaimed. Silver glanced at her and made an indifferent sound. Sure, it was nice, but he'd seen better places. He couldn't focus on the scenery. He was feeling tense and wary, and he didn't particularly like it.

"Yeah," Falkner said with a comfortable sigh. Hoothoot warbled in agreement. "I come up here to train with my Pokémon. Or to spend time with them when there isn't a challenger."

There was a soft _whoosh,_ and a flurry of feathers. A Pidgeot, long evolved since Lyra's first passage through Violet, lead a group of flying types, who had evidently been making an enjoyable circuit through the Violet City skies.

Along with Pidgeot, who had gone to greet Falkner, were a Noctowl, Swellow, Pelipper, Staraptor, and Honchkrow, whom Lyra recognized from her frequent rematches with the Gym Leader. There were multiple lower evolutions milling about as well, splashing in the fountain, pecking at the grass, or clustering in the bushes and trees.

"So how is Champion life treating you, Lyra?" Falkner asked, caressing the soft crest of his Pidgeot. "Figured you might have to stay up on Indigo Plateau with the rest of those immortals."

Silver tensed up at the mocking implications of the statement, but Lyra laughed it off. He reluctantly relaxed when he realized that the Gym Leader was only joking. Meganium nudged him, confused by his trainer's antics.

_Why the heck am I so edgy?_

"No, no. Actually, staying there is only a suggestion. The Elite Four offered me living quarters, but I couldn't possibly call that place home by any means," she said with a shrug. "Will is really the only one who stays there constantly because he can practice his psychic abilities in his chamber in peace. Bruno, I think he often trains on Mount Silver. Karen likes to go out during the night to search for Dark-Types. Koga- well, no one is really sure where Koga goes, but I think he sometimes visits his daughter in Fuschia. Y'know, Janine."

"Y-yeah, I know her. Constantly thinks her dad's so great for being an Elite Four member. That girl's stubborn as a Tauros," Falkner said, trying (and failing) to sound dismissive. Silver was sure he had seen red flaring up across the blue-haired Leader's face. But it was soon hidden when Falkner turned his head, under the pretenses of suddenly deciding to fix his hair that had been mussed by the breeze.

Silver seemed to relax more easily then. It was rather funny to see the cool and composed (almost to the point of being arrogant) Gym Leader getting his feathers ruffled by the mere mention of some other Gym Leader girl's name. Silver almost felt… relieved, as if Falkner was no longer a threat. A threat to what, though, he had no clue.

"And Lance, well you know him," Lyra continued.

Well, so much for acting relaxed…

"He still kinda keeps everything together. He leads the Elite Four since he knows that I'm not really made for that kind of thing. It was very kind of him to offer to watch over things while I continue to travel. He still goes around a lot though. Visits his cousin, Claire, from time to time…"

_Crazy costume woman. Absolutely nuts._

"And he's happy to oblige me with a battle if I ever go up against the Elite Four again. He's a wonderful trainer, he still presents me with a challenge."

Silver was rather surprised to find that his fists and his jaw were clenched.

"Hm. Sounds like everything's going well, then," Falkner said with a nod of approval, facing the pigtailed girl after being absolutely sure that his face no longer bore any traces of red.

"Yeah, I've been doing a lot of extensive training, especially with Fang," Lyra responded happily, resting her hand on the broad shoulder of her reptilian follower. "It's been hard work, but it's been really beneficial to our bond. And just two days ago, in Azalea Town, I bumped into Silver and we decided to train together for a little while. And… Silver?"

Silver's metallic eyes snapped up from the ground to meet her confused brown ones.

"You okay, Silver? You look upset about something…"

He shifted in place grumbling a response, "Nothing. Just a headache is all."

Why was he suddenly tense and irritable? He no longer hated Lance. He and the previous Champion had parted on good terms the last time they met, when he and Lyra teamed up in a double-battle against Lance and Claire. He and the caped man had shaken hands, leaving behind their mistrust of one another.

_So why…?_

He felt a bit like he had just a few minutes ago around Falkner. Wary, edgy…

"So, you two are heading to Dark Cave you said?" Falkner clarified, pulling out three pokeballs and returning his Honchkrow, Hoothoot, and Swellow, while leaving the rest out. His Pidgeot remained next to his side. "Any particular reason?"

"Oh, it's nearby. It's on the way to where I plan to head anyways, so why not?" Lyra said with a shrug. "And I asked Silver if he'd like to come along."

Falkner nodded, making his way back to the elevator and beckoning the two trainers to follow him. It was, surprisingly, not too tight a squeeze even with Pidgeot taking up more space. They emerged on the ground floor and Falkner lead them outside again.

"So, just training, hm? I wonder if you might encounter some foreign Pokémon. I heard that, for some reason, a few species from Hoenn and Sinnoh have been spotted here and there, but they're rather hard to coax out into the open."

Lyra's face lit up. "That would be amazing. I wonder why they've started appearing all of a sudden?"

"No idea, but if you ever spot a Chatot, you'd better catch it for me, got it?" the Gym Leader demanded. "I've heard they've been seen, but no luck for me so far."

"Got it," Lyra chuckled. Then, her eyes widened in realization. "Hey, it's Tuesday, isn't it?"

"I'm amazed, Lyra," Silver said sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "You remembered what day it was."

Lyra playfully stuck her tongue out at him before looking back at Falkner. "So you were in Celadon again yesterday, weren't you?"

"Er… yeah…" Falkner's face turned a subtle pink. "What of it?"

"Oh, I was just wondering how you two were doing is all," she said innocently, but Silver picked up a sly tone in her voice. Falkner must have noticed it too, because his flushed face noticeably reddened further.

"I have _absolutely_ no idea what you're talking about," he said, closing his eyes and crossing his arms. Silver had no idea either, and he gave Lyra a quizzical glance. "I go there to get premium feed for my bird Pokémon."

Lyra didn't notice Silver's bewildered stare, but continued on in her innocent voice, even though a knowing grin was plastered on her face. "Sure, Falkner. I mean, the Celadon Department Store _must_ have _quite_ a great selection since you fly _every week_ all the way to Kanto. Instead of a quick trip to Goldenrod's store, which must not even begin to compare, you go the distance to get only the best. Am I right?" she finished with a wink.

Now Silver was completely lost, but the Gym Leader was now scarlet in the face, and was valiantly, but fruitlessly, trying to hide it and the fact that he very well knew exactly what the girl was talking about.

_What the heck is going on?_

With a flustered huff, Falkner turned away, muttering almost inaudibly about crazy rumors and how they get spread around.

Lyra successfully managed to bite back a giggle. She cleared her face of amusement and waited patiently for the Gym Leader to regain his composure and turn back to them again. Once he did, he glanced at Silver with his stormy blue eyes.

"Silver, if I may have a word with you, please?"

Silver blinked at the rather abrupt request, but he followed the Gym Leader back to the gym's doors.

"Meganium," he called, and his green Pokémon lumbered loyally after them.

"We'll only be a few moments, Lyra," Falkner said back to the pigtailed girl, who was watching them curiously.

Falkner brought Silver back into the lobby of the gym, in front of the elevator.

"I never really thought good of you for a long time Silver," the blue-haired Leader started out frankly. "I knew you were powerful, but I didn't have much respect for you."

Silver's mercury eyes hardened and he opened his mouth to retaliate with a crushing retort, but he was cut off by Falkner's raised hand.

"Let me finish."

Silver glared at him, but he closed his mouth and allowed him to continue.

"I had every reason think that way. You treated your Pokémon as tools. Nothing more than a means to an end. And you showed as little respect towards others as that little idiot who was bothering Lyra earlier," Silver's eyes flashed in outrage, but he knew that Falkner was right. So he kept quiet.

"_However_," Falkner continued. "I can see that you have changed. The way you interact with your Pokémon is radically different than I remember when you battled me. As I recall, you nearly hit him when he was defeated by my Pidgey. Now…" he gestured to Meganium, who was standing next to Silver comfortably. "Now, you have become true partners that trust each other. And that's not all I have noticed."

"What are you talking about?" Silver asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You show respect for other people, as well. Especially one in particular," Falkner responded smoothly. "The way you defended Lyra's reputation against that punk was a bit, er, excessive, but decent nonetheless. You must care about your rival to stand up for her like that."

"We're friends now."

Silver blinked, unsure of where those words had come from. He had just spoken them automatically, as if he were correcting Falkner's choice of words.

"Are you now?" Falkner asked, a slight smile on his face. "Good to hear. Either way, though, you must care about her in order to stand up for her so vehemently."

Silver looked away, trying to feign indifference. After a few moments of silence, though, he realized that Falkner was waiting for him to say something, as if expecting him to deny it.

_He's going to be a bit disappointed, if that's what he's waiting for._

"Of course I care about her," he stated simply, and Falkner raised an eyebrow. Silver felt something inside him lurch unexpectedly as he said it, but he spoke the truth. He wasn't sure why he was speaking so plainly in front of the Violet City Gym Leader, but he was. "She never gave me a single, real, effing reason to hate her. Even if I wanted to, dammit, I couldn't. Hell, I learned that while ago."

"I didn't ask if you hated her. I said you cared about her," Falkner said after a pause.

"I don't need _you_ to point out the obvious. Yeah, I care about her. So what's it to you if I do? What the big freaking deal if I do?" Silver asked defensively, his eyes flashing a glare at Falkner.

Falkner looked at him, his gaze hard, for a few seconds. Silver looked defiantly back.

Finally, the Gym Leader sighed. "Alright, I know I can trust you with this, then. I was a little leery about outright telling Lyra, but you will do."

"What are you talking about?" Silver asked, fed up with beating around the bush.

"Well, the thing is, I've been noticing some shady figures here and there. Not like Team Rocket. It's strange. They seem to be rogue trainers, but I can never exactly catch anyone at it. They don't seem to be an organization, because there seems to be no distinguishing thing about any of them. However, I've heard… things. Some of the citizens here have overheard bits of conversation from people they don't know. Something that concerns the Champion- Lyra. At first, I didn't really think much of it, but there have been several people who have notified me about it, and it makes me kind of nervous."

Silver froze, feeling anger and a sense of dread boiling up inside of him. Could those people have any relation to the mysterious initials of RP? Great, now he was going to feel paranoid again. Meganium, wide-eyed, snorted in rage.

"Lyra's a good person, Silver," Falkner said after a long silence. "I wouldn't want something bad to happen to her."

"You're preaching to the choir," Silver said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

"Well, you're traveling with her. I just wanted to warn you. In case you meet some strange people."

Silver looked back at Falkner, completely serious. "I'm already on it."

The Gym Leader nodded. "Good. That is all."

They left the building and found Lyra where they'd left her, sitting with her back propped against Fang's side. She jerked her head towards them and got to her feet, dusting her overalls off.

"Ready to go, Silver?" she asked, sending a sweet smile his way. He tried to ignore the sudden rush he felt.

"Let's just get out of here already."

"Oh, then I guess I'll see you later, Falkner," she said, in a chipper fashion, extending her hand.

Falkner took it with a nod. "It was good to talk to you again, Lyra. Same to you, Silver. Best of luck with your training."

Silver nodded as Lyra chirped her thanks.

"And give my regards to Janine next Monday!" she added innocently as they turned to leave, chuckling as the Gym Leader uncharacteristically stuttered, his face turning pink.

**(~)**

**Eee! Falkner! I couldn't resist. He's awesome. And I really loved throwing in a huge, lovable portion of FatherlyShipping (Falkner/Janine). Seriously, what guy _would_ travel to a different country each Monday, just to go to a store and argue with a chick if he didn't really like her? ^^  
*squee*  
Sorry, still hyped up on FatherlyShipping. Should I do a story on that sometime? Methinks I should, but what are your opinions?**

**Fang the Feraligatr wants you to comment, criticize, or ANYTHING that has to do with that little blue button below this message.**

**Later! ~Meta-Akira  
**


	11. Laughter

**Hello, everyone! Akira here! I'm sorry for the wait, but it's been exceedingly busy! I have the next installment for Time's Design right here! It was meant to be longer, but if I put more in, I wouldn't be able to break it off appropriately without making it exceedingly long. Thus, this chapter is very lighthearted in light of the Christmas season. I promise the next segment won't resemble a filler as much as this one does.  
**

**Thanks go out to all my loyal readers, especially my regular commentors: AikoAkahana, MarlinMarlen, and Doggiefan!**

**Also, I'd like to dedicate this chapter to a roleplay buddy of mine. We had a roleplay moment that inspired part of this segment. Her name is Hawaiianbabidoll, otherwise known as Kit!**

**I do not own the characters of HG and SS.**

**As always, read, enjoy, and review!**

**(~)  
**

Silver sighed, straining his metallic eyes against the darkness of the cave.

Lyra was fumbling with several objects on the ground. He rolled his eyes when he heard her mutter something like, "can't tell which is which in the dark", while Fang grumbled impatiently.

Honestly, Lyra had struck him as the type who would have picked the pokeball containing their light source off of her belt _before_ entering into a cave leeched of all brightness. But, he supposed that he had expected a tad too much of her.

See, as she had reached for the pokeball she had wanted, she stumbled over a small stone. Her hand bumped all of the pokeballs clasped to her belt, and they had fallen to the ground. Now she sat, in complete darkness, gathering up the pokeballs and trying to blindly make out which one belonged to the specified Pokémon.

"Aw, forget this!"

Silver turned towards the direction of her exasperated voice, and the cave flickered with the light from five pokeballs opening- the sixth not opening since Fang was already out. But the light was gone in seconds. He smirked as he imagined the confusion of all her Pokémon being sent from their snug pokeballs into a solid blanket of absolute darkness. There was a bit of a scuffling sound, and a thrash, followed by a surprised squawk and a buzz. A small "oomph" also resounded after an enormous sweeping sound.

"Votum, wherever you are, couldja be a pal and help us out?" Lyra's strained voice called from the ground.

A small gleam came from a circular gem off to Silver's left, and light flooded forth. He threw an arm over his eyes, grumbling about the sudden seizure of his irises. After a moment, his face resurfaced, blinking like a Hoothoot.

His eyes adjusted to find an extremely amusing sight. Besides Meganium, who was currently behind Silver, all Lyra's Pokémon looked surprised and dazed. They hadn't gotten through the rough, corridor-like passage to the main belly of the cave, so there wasn't an excess of room. And unfortunately, a couple of Lyra's Pokémon were a bit large.

Rapier, her Beedrill, was squashed against the wall along with her Fearow, Fia. Both looked a little disgruntled. They were pinned in place by the large, thick, finned tail of a scarlet Gyarados, whom Lyra had fondly named Garnet. Garnet looked very confused and rather out of place, finding herself to be in a small, dry cave rather than a nice pool of water. Easily being Lyra's biggest Pokémon, she had inadvertently pushed the others to the sides when she emerged from her pokeball. Fang had ended up sprawled beneath the crimson tail of the befuddled sea serpent. Pitfall, her poor Nidoking, had been released a nanosecond after Garnet, and ended up on her back, and was squirming around, trying to free himself from the uncomfortable spot between one of Garnet's crests and the rocky ceiling. Votum, the second condition to Silver's deal back in Azalea's Pokémon Center, had been shoved forcefully away with a thrash of Garnet's snake-like body and had landed on Lyra, who was flattened on the ground. He had, since Silver's latest encounter with him, evolved into a Slowking, looking much more impressive and a bit more intelligent than his previous form. But at the moment, he looked rather stunned, so much that he didn't make any move to get off of Lyra's back.

Lyra looked as frazzled and stunned as her Pokémon. Her puffy white hat had been knocked askew. She tried to get up, but ultimately failed since Votum was still sitting on her back.

"Votum… can't _breathe_…" she wheezed in protest, flailing about unsuccessfully.

Jumping as though shocked by an electrical charge, the Royal Pokémon scrambled off of her, looking embarrassed.

Silver couldn't take it anymore. The dam burst.

Lyra looked totally astounded when she heard uncontrollable laughter ringing through the cave. She turned her head to see Silver, _Silver_, brought to his knees by unrestrained laughter. Blinking in amazement, she tried to remember if she had ever heard him laugh. Aside for the rare chuckle, nothing came to mind.

Silver had always seemed too reserved and distant to ever display himself laughing in front of other people. Even around Lyra, who saw him smile from time to time, he was always fairly quiet.

But now…

Now, he was doubled over, laughing endlessly, only interrupted by gasps for much-needed oxygen.

It was, she considered, a nice laugh. It was surprisingly friendly-sounding, not anything she expected to come from her once-bitter rival. It filled the cave. And, as how it often happens in absurd situations such as these, she found herself bursting into laughter as well.

And once the floodgates had been opened, well, it was difficult to stop.

Very difficult.

Whenever it seemed like the laughter was starting to drag and quiet down, they would deteriorate back into hilarity for another few minutes. And so the cycle continued for a time.

Finally, out of breath and feeling as though they had run a mile, their laughs finally dissolved, the echoes fading soon after.

Silver panted, still kneeling on the cold ground, trying to stop himself from chuckling at Meganium's utterly bewildered face.

_I don't think I've ever laughed so hard. Ever._

It was actually the truth. Before all of this he hardly had a reason to smile, let alone laugh full-out like that. Now, he seemed to have a slightly lighter disposition.

And laughing like that, especially once Lyra joined in, was surprisingly refreshing.

However, immediately, he began questioning his actions.

_Why the hell did you just do that, idiot? You don't laugh. You don't display emotions! _Especially_ not around _her_! Emotion! It's a weakness. Get rid of it!_

Obviously, there was still a small piece of his old self embedded in his subconscious somewhere. The part of him that was a total ass. Yeah, he learned that caring for Pokémon meant real strength. But old habits die hard, and he still sometimes found himself in that mindset.

He disregarded the voice much more easily than usual, and glanced over at Lyra, who was wiping a tear of laughter from one bright cinnamon eye. She looked at him, smiling sheepishly.

"A little help would be nice…" she giggled weakly.

With a roll of his eyes, he held out a hand to her, and she reached to grab it so he could tug her to her feet. As he pulled, his mercury eyes lingered on her bright cheerful ones, and his hand almost seemed to go numb. Troubled by the tingling in his fingers, he released her hand as soon as she was upright and turned away, flexing his hand in confusion.

He didn't seem to notice Lyra's baffled look. But Lyra quickly gave up on whatever had startled him, and she turned to her pile of Pokémon blocking the passageway. Garnet had a rather apologetic and humiliated look on her large red face. After all, it was her size that had caused the problem.

"It's okay, Garnet. It's not your fault. It's mine. I had a clumsy moment, and I released all of you at the same time. I wasn't thinking. Return."

The Red Gyarados disappeared in a beam of red. Fia and Rapier breathed a sigh of relief. Fang was about to get to his feet, when Pitfall, no longer supported by Garnet's back, fell in a heap on top of him. Lyra covered her mouth with her hands, and started apologizing frantically to the both of them as Fang managed to push Pitfall off of him.

Still apologizing, she returned Pitfall, Fia, and Rapier, but left out Votum. The gem embedded in the Shellder on his head still gleamed, and he was in control of the light fully illuminating the cave corridor.

Lyra sighed, adjusting her hat so that it sat straight on her head again, "Yeesh, glad that's all over with. You ready to go, Silver?"

Silver jerked out of his musings. He dropped his hand to his side, then nodded, his more aloof side taking dominance again.

"I've been ready for a while," he said.

As the two walked off, a pair of gleaming maroon eyes watched them from the shadows.

o0O0o0O0o

A good half-hour of walking had passed. Occasionally, a rock would need crushing, and a Geodude, Graveler, or Zubat would show up and ruin the peace of the cave. But it hardly even took a minor Water Pulse from Votum to chase them away.

Silver was getting tad bit impatient. After all, Lyra had told him that there were some Pokémon here that were difficult to find elsewhere. But so far, all he'd seen were the extremely common cave goers. They had walked around an underground lake, and he had crossed his arms, hoping that these "rare" Pokémon would soon make their appearance.

A few minutes more, and he decided to break the silence.

"So where are these rare Pokémon you were talking about? So far, I haven't seen a single Pokémon that I haven't already seen a thousand times in caves like this one," he grumbled.

Lyra flapped a hand. "You have to know where to look, Silver. Rare Pokémon aren't rare for nothing."

He sighed again as Lyra narrowed her eyes at a crumbling rock.

"If I remember correctly…" she started, walking over to the cracked stone. "…then I should be able to find one around here…"

Silver shook his head in exasperation as Lyra examined the stone. She then smiled and nodded.

"Hey, Votum. Could you wreck the stone with your Psychic?"

Votum nodded in affirmation, and a purplish glow surrounded the stone. It split in two, and Lyra brightened.

"Ah! I was right! There was one hiding in that stone. That's why it was all cracked up!"

She straightened up and turned around, her hand clasped around the tail of one of the most bizarre Pokémon Silver had ever laid eyes on.

It almost looked like a snake, but it was plump. Its eyes were closed, and it appeared to have tiny wings and a drill for a tail. It squirmed half-heartedly in her grip.

"The hell is _that_?" Silver deigned to ask, looking rather disgusted.

"_This_," Lyra said proudly, "is a Dunsparce! They're very rare, and they're only found here in Dark Cave, hiding in these rocks!"

Silver eyed the creature and it let out a rather unimpressive yawn. He returned his gaze to Lyra.

"You're kidding, right?" he deadpanned.

"No…" Lyra said, shaking her head.

"Please tell me it evolves into something a bit more… remarkable…"

Again she shook her head. "No, they don't evolve. But I'm still a little excited to see one this close. I've never seen one before, outside of battle that is."

Silver fought the urge to slap his hand to his forehead in aggravation. "So you're telling me that these lumps are what we travelled here to battle?" he asked, gesturing to the Dunsparce, who seemed to have fallen asleep. Lyra must've woken it from its nap when she had found it.

Meganium threw Fang a perplexed look and the Feraligatr returned it with a shrug.

"Well, I've been trying to complete my Pokedex," she said, scanning it with her Pokedex.

"_Dunsparce, the Land Snake Pokémon. When spotted, this Pokémon escapes backwards by furiously boring into the ground with its tail. It can float just slightly using its wings,_" the mechanical object whirred. Lyra nodded, flipping the Pokedex closed and sliding it back into her bag.

"They aren't the only uncommon Pokémon that lives here. There are others," she continued, bending down to replace the snoozing Dunsparce behind another rock.

"Good. Otherwise I'd feel as though I wasted a day of my life," he muttered after Lyra dusted herself off and continued on.

"Aw, c'mon. Every Pokémon has the potential to be powerful. Especially Magikarp!"

When Silver snorted, she shook her head.

"Scoff all ya want, smart guy, but remember that Garnet here," she tapped one of the shiny spheres on her belt knowingly, "was a Magikarp once. Now, she's one of my strongest Pokémon."

As if he had to be reminded of that. That red serpent was a beast at battling, whether or not she was rather shy and gentle off of the field. Seriously, it was like a Pokémon version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

"And your Crobat is another example," Lyra chattered on. Silver blinked in surprise. "Zubat are some of the most common Pokémon that can be found in caves. A lot of people pass them off as weak nuisances. But you caught yours, trained it, and eventually formed a bond with it, and look what it became! A Crobat, and those are extremely loyal Pokémon who you definitely don't see every day. It takes a lot of work, but any Pokémon can grow to be strong and extraordinary, if you just have the patience and determination."

"Whatever, sorry I asked," he sighed. However, despite his dismissive attitude towards her words, he continued to roll them around in his head thoughtfully as they continued on deeper into the dark cavern, a pair of gleaming maroon eyes silently following close.

**(~)**

**Oooh, mysterious eyes of doom!  
Yeah, anyways, I'm sorry for the filler-esque appearance of this chapter. I hope you liked it nonetheless. I promise that action is coming. And soon! I'll have a nice little Christmas SoulSilvershipping one-shot out soon.**

**Fang the Feraligatr wants you to review. Rawr.  
**

**Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!**

**Later, all! ~Meta-Akira**


	12. Absol

**Hey! Akira here! Sorry it took almost a month for me to update this. I got stuck a couple of times. I had the basic result visualized, but the problem was getting there. So I came up with this. It's a little more serious. And Silver's mouth is dirty. Time to get out the LifeBuoy. More power to you who get the joke. XD**

**Got a whopping nine reviews since my last update! 8D  
Big thanks go out to my lurvely Reviewers: .xX, iRiD3PONi3S, AngelicSnow, Sparks101, and i lov Wizardmon.  
Bonus thanks to MarlinMarlen and Doggiefan, who review regularly. You guys are awesome. ;D**

**I do not own the characters of HG and SS.**

**As always, read, enjoy, and review. ^^**

**(~)  
**

_This is stupid. This is stupid. This is stupid. This is so pathetically stupid._

So went the mantra that echoed and bounced around in Silver's mind, repeating with the beat of his footfalls. He ground his teeth and tightened his fists.

_So far, this has been a waste of my time!_

Lyra was quietly walking next to him, looking a little guilty. They were currently heading up Route 45 towards Blackthorn. **(A.N. I know you can't really head up that route, but it's kinda crucial that they head up instead of down.) **Dark Cave had been left behind.

_Good riddance, too. Why I ever let Lyra decide where to go to train…_

He climbed up a ledge with some noticeable ferocity. Lyra followed meekly behind him. They had both recalled Meganium and Fang so that they could continue up the ledge-covered pathway without being hindered by their size.

Silver was certain that he would never set foot in Dark Cave. It was, in his opinion, the source of some of the most useless Pokémon in existence.

_Strong Pokémon my arse._

What had happened was that Silver found out who the other rare Pokémon occupant of Dark Cave was. And he nearly had a conniption when Lyra pointed out what resembled a blue punching bag.

And considering how those pathetic creatures battled, their resemblance did not surprise Silver.

"_Wobbuffet? You brought us here to battle freaking Wobbuffet?"_

"_Well… I-I thought it would give us a chance to battle in a different way…"_

"_You can't be serious!"_

"_But since they only use moves like Counter and Mirror Coat, we would see how to battle something that throws attacks back at us… and…"_

"_They can't even attack first! They pose no threat! Ugh! First the effin' Dunsparce, now this!"_

Not that they didn't give a go at it. Silver stuck around for about an hour before tiring of battling Wobbuffet and storming out of Dark Cave. He hadn't said a word since, and Lyra hadn't attempted to break it yet.

Which allowed his annoyance to simmer and bubble as he wrathfully stomped through the route.

"Um… S-Silver?"

He paused in his stride, and looked over his shoulder at her coldly. He grunted to tell her she had his attention.

"I… I just wanted to say that I'm sorry. I… Well, I thought it sounded like a good idea… Something that could improve battle strategy, but… Well, obviously you didn't think so," she said, fidgeting. "I know you think that was all just a waste of time."

"Damn straight," he replied shortly. Lyra flinched from both his tone and his word choice. It had been a while since he had sworn at her.

Silver noticed her wince and felt a slight pang of guilt. But his frustration overrode it for the time being.

"R-Right. Well, I'm sorry. You know… for not telling you beforehand and for wasting your time…" she finished.  
"Hm. That all?" he said shortly. She nodded, not meeting his eyes.

"Also, can we stop for lunch soon? There's a small lake up ahead that would be good to stop for an hour or so," she suggested.

"Whatever," he said with a roll of his eyes. He didn't want to sound agreeable at the moment, but he was starting to feel a bit hungry. And he would appreciate a bit of time to focus his thoughts.

They hiked for another fifteen minutes in silence. When the lake was in view, Silver finally turned to Lyra.

"Going for a walk," he said brusquely.

"Alright," she said quietly. "I'll make lunch then. It won't take too long to prepare."

"Right, whatever. Later," he said, turning and walking away as quickly as he could.

He just needed some time away from this girl.

He was hardly aware of where he was going, but he mentally kept note of the direction the lake was as he sauntered along the somewhat weathered rocky pathways.

_Big waste of my time. Sometimes she can be so infuriating! Why the hell would she think that battling Wobbuffet would be beneficial to anyone?_

However, he was already feeling a twinge of regret washing over him. The more reasonable half of his mind was questioning why he had snapped at Lyra so bitterly.

_I just… I dunno. I guess I just need a bit of time to myself. When I'm around her, it gets damn hard to think after a while. I'm justified… aren't I?_

He sighed, his anger slowly dissipating as he walked off. He ran a hand through his crimson hair distractedly. The cliffs not too far away were pockmarked with small caves, not too deep in size. He saw a small wood, and his legs took him there without really thinking about it.

Soon he found himself in a sparse forest. He would just sit up against a tree and try to gather his scattered thoughts and cool his temper. He'd head back then.

"Why is she so infuriating, sometimes?" he brought forth his question to no one. He was rather glad that Meganium wasn't around to hear his rant. Meganium liked Lyra far too much to tolerate his griping right now. But he had to blow off steam to someone. Almost subconsciously, he picked a certain Pokeball off of his belt.

He was no Meganium, but he was pretty close to Silver, considering that he was also taken, erm, _forcibly_, from his previous owner.

"C'mon out," he muttered, pressing the button, and the light took shape.

"Snea?"

His Dark/Ice type looked around in confusion. Perhaps he was expecting battle. Perhaps he was just curious as to where he and his master were at this point.

"Snea? Sneasel sneas sneasel… sel?"

"We're on our way to Blackthorn, if that answers your question," Silver said, leaning up against the thick, solid trunk of a tree and sliding down to the ground with a sigh.

"Snea…sel?"

"Didn't you know?" Silver said with a roll of his eyes. "I'm traveling with Lyra."

"_Sneasnea_?" Sneasel seemed caught off guard by this information.

"Sorry," he said, rolling his eyes again. "Didn't think I needed to clear the decision with the committee."

"_Sneas_," Sneasel rolled his eyes right back at him sarcastically. While Meganium seemed to emulate Lyra, Sneasel took after his master much more. "Sneasel?"

"It's not your business why," Silver coolly replied. "Ask Meganium the next time you two are out. He'll explain things."

"Sneasel…. Sneaselsnea sneas snea sel sneasel Sneasnea?" Sneasel suggested with a growing smirk. Silver grew outraged, though he couldn't help but feel a weird squirm inside of him, and his cheeks were the faintest tinge of pink.*

"Shut _up_ you stupid creature! Don't _ever_ suggest something like that otherwise I'll have you doing laps around the rim of Cinnabar's volcano. _Got it?_"

"Snea… Sneasel," Sneasel just shrugged off his threat dismissively, dropping the subject under his master's burning gaze.

"Anyways, I didn't let you out of your ball to hear your stupid theories. I want to vent a bit," he said shortly, still seeing red from Sneasel's ridiculous question. He glanced over at Sneasel and hesitated. He still wasn't completely used to considering Pokémon's feelings, but he was still making an effort. "You don't… mind… do you?"

"Sel," the ice weasel said simply, shaking his head and flipping a white claw, gesturing for him to speak his mind.

"I just need some time away from that girl. She can get so damn annoying, you know? Well, no. Of course not, since every single one of my Pokémon thinks she's so wonderful," he snorted sarcastically. "She said she could help me train you guys up some. I just went along with it. But she dragged me to Dark Cave, saying that there were rare and powerful Pokémon to be found there. You know what we found? Dunsparce and Wobbuffet. Besides that, just the constant flood of Zubat and Geodude. She said that fighting Wobbuffet could help us experience something different when battle or whatever crap she said."

"Sneaselsnea selsnea snea?"

"Well, I told her what a stupid idea it was. I mean, anyone could see that it was an idiotic plan," he said impatiently. But Sneasel didn't look impressed. And again, he was assaulted mentally by the more reasonable side of his mind.

_Technically, she didn't drag me. I willingly came. And she _was_ only trying to help. I guess it makes a weird sort of sense, if you think about it. Not that I think it's very effective. But she might know more about different kinds of training than me. Crap… Why the hell did I snap at her?_

"I guess I acted like a bit of an ass," he reluctantly admitted after a few minutes of silence.

"Snea _sneasel_?" Silver could vaguely interpret that to be "a_ little bit_?" He couldn't help but smirk in response.

"But I just can't help it. Being around her for a long time can get me so angry, and I can't understand why…"

Sneasel said nothing, so Silver assumed that the sly Pokémon had no advice on the matter. The creature was staring off towards the west. Silver sighed and tried to relax a bit. He might as well take advantage of the time he had before he had to get back to the small lake where Lyra had promised to make lunch. He was about to close his eyes, when he noticed Sneasel stiffen.

The black weasel's ears twitched and he sniffed at the breeze that went by. A small growl escaped his throat.

"What is it? Wild Pokémon?" Silver asked coolly. But he sat bolt upright when another possibility presented itself to his mind.

_RP…_

Could it possibly be someone from RP? If he knew Sneasel, even a little bit, the creature wouldn't react like this to a simple wild Pokémon just passing by, with hardly any interest in a Sneasel and his trainer. No, whatever it was that alerted the weasel, it had to be close.

Silver got to his feet before you could say 'thief'. He looked warily about, his metallic eyes flicking from tree to tree to see if he could spot something hiding behind one of them.

"If it's dangerous, Sneasel," Silver murmured almost inaudibly, but the twitching of Sneasel's red ear told him he heard his trainer's comment, "you have my permission to attack it."

Sneasel nodded, getting into a battle-ready stance. His white talons were brandished as he shifted his stance. He bared his small, but sharp, teeth, and tried to make himself appear as tall as his three-foot height allowed him to.

Like Meganium, even though he had been stolen, he had grown attached to Silver and would protect him at any cost.

Sneasel and Silver stood in silence, the only movement coming from the Pokémon's constantly-twitching ears and nose. After a while, Sneasel relaxed. The scent was no longer on the breeze. A few minutes later, and Silver finally whispered out his question.

"Is it gone, Sneasel?"

Sneasel turned to face him, still wary but obviously less tense. He gave Silver a salute with one claw. Silver released the breath he was holding.

_Why the hell am I getting so paranoid now? It all leads back to this RP thing. If it weren't for this mysterious RP, I probably wouldn't have gotten so tense about all this! Ugh, I sound like a cowardly idiot. It may have just been a passing trainer or an Ursaring._

With that, he turned around to go. But before he could take a step, the bush before him rattled, and something sprung out at him, pinning him back against the tree.

"SNEAS!"

Silver found himself looking into a pair of sharp, intelligent maroon eyes.

_Oh… crap…_

o0O0o0O0o (With Lyra) o0O0o0O0o

Lyra sighed as she looked out at the small lake. She had released her team to enjoy themselves. Garnet and Votum eagerly went into the water. Garnet was having fun gyrating through the blue, while Votum was amusing himself by using Psychic to lift up spheres of water and try to make them into shapes. So far, he had managed to create shapes of himself, Fia, and Rapier. He was now trying to suspend many spheres to shape and connect them into a six-foot-long version of Lyra's Gyarados. It was entertaining as well as a good source of training.

Fia and Rapier were currently racing each other around the clearing, and Pitfall was dozing a good ways away from any water. Fang was lounging next to his beloved trainer. He had already played in the water with the other two, but he felt that Lyra currently needed some company.

Though a smile still stuck to her features, he correctly assumed that something was preoccupying her as she carefully built a few sandwiches. She let out a sigh, and Fang's suspicions seemed to be confirmed. He rumbled gently at her in concern.

Lyra jumped, as though she had forgotten that she had been resting her back against the side of an enormous blue reptile. She quickly shot an apologetic smile towards her long-time companion, but it didn't fool him a bit. She noticed, and she looked at the completed sandwiches before her.

"Sorry, Fang. Didn't mean to worry you. It's just that I made Silver upset. I didn't mean to. He just got ticked off because he thinks we were wasting time in Dark Cave," she murmured quietly.

He raised his yellow eyes to the sky and growled, pretty much saying "he _always_ seems to have a stick in his behind about something". This look made Lyra laugh, her smile more genuine now.

"Yeah, I just didn't think he would snap at me about it. But it's alright," she said hastily, catching the look in her Feraligatr's eye. "No need for you to go after Silver for this. I understand how he feels. Besides," her voice quiets a bit. "He's not the only thing that's been taking up my attention. I'm also thinking about… you know."

Fang tensed, and his eyes narrowed at Lyra.

"Ferrrrrr. Ali…gatrrrrr. Feral Feraligatr gatr."

"I know I shouldn't let it worry me. But sometimes, I can't help but think about it," she said, gazing without seeing across the lake. Feraligatr merely growled, and curled his thick, scaly tail around his trainer. Lyra's smile was genuine again, and she patted Fang's head gratefully. She then glanced at her Pokegear and frowned slightly.

"Hm… I wonder when Silver will be back. He didn't really give a time. It'll probably be best to let him come back when he wants," she sighed, leaning back against her Feraligatr's side again. "I just hope… he doesn't want to leave so soon…"

o0O0o0O0o (Back with Silver) o0O0o0O0o

Silver gazed defiantly into those maroon eyes, even if he felt a slight flicker of fear dart through him. Sneasel seemed to be having a fit, hissing and spitting like an angered Meowth, flashing his claws. But whatever this creature was, it paid Sneasel no heed. It pinned Silver to the tree with bear-like paws. The only comfort Silver found in the maroon gaze was that it was not looking at him with malice. Instead, it seemed to be inspecting him, as if making sure of him.

"Sneasel! Snea sel sneas Sneaselsnea! Sel!" Sneasel snarled out, threatening the Pokémon.

The creature finally tore his gaze from Silver, and focused on the angered weasel.

"Sol. Ab absol sol absol." The Pokémon responded, calm in contrast to Sneasel. Sneasel still glared at the creature menacingly. Finally, the Pokémon sighed a quiet "sol," and finally let up, releasing Silver and resting its front paws on the ground. It had both dog and cat-like features. He was sleek and mostly covered with long, white fur. A navy, feline face poked out from a white, teardrop-shaped fur crest. Protruding from his head was a lethal-looking sickle-like blade. A tail that matched extended from his rump. Three navy talons grew from each bear-like paw. Silver had never seen any Pokémon like it in Johto or Kanto.

Now that his master was free from this strange Pokémon's grip, Sneasel relaxed somewhat, but still watched the white Pokémon suspiciously.

Silver had managed to calm down a bit, and was observing this new Pokémon. He had never glimpsed this Pokémon before in the book he owned. He was quite sure he wouldn't find answers like he had about Celebi.

"What does it want, Sneasel?" Silver asked. He could at least somewhat make out what Sneasel was trying to say.

"Snea sneasel sel Sneaselsnea," Sneasel replied, obviously not too sure himself. He didn't really clear up any of Silver's questions, either.

"What do you mean he wanted to see me?" Sneasel only shrugged.

"Absol. Sol absol ab. Sol. Absol," the white Pokémon uttered quietly, looking Silver straight in the eye, then looking pointedly in the direction which Silver had come. Before Silver managed to respond to this, the creature leapt away gracefully, giving Silver a look that easily told him they'd meet again.

Silver was left speechless. Sneasel just exchanged a look with his trainer.

"Snea?"

"I dunno what just happened, but I'll try to find out," he said, running over the bizarre event in his mind as he turned towards where Lyra had stopped for the break.

He couldn't figure out what Pokémon that was. But if Lyra had the National Pokedex upgrade, then she could answer his questions for him.

He made his way back to the small lake, Sneasel nimbly scurrying after him with ease. He caught sight of the enormous scarlet Gyarados first, the lake second, and Lyra's hat third. He slowed his pace.

Lyra looked up as she heard her rival-turned-friend approach. She smiled at him, but it wasn't as bright as it usually was. Silver cringed inside, having almost completely forgotten about his short temper with her earlier. Being blindsided by an exotic Pokémon kind of forced out those thoughts. Fang also glanced over at him, and growled briefly, but was silenced by Lyra's gentle touch.

"Oh, hello Silver. I was wondering where you were," she said kindly, still managing to be genial. He felt another stab of guilt and wondered briefly how she did it. "I… I made you lunch, if you were hungry."

"Oh…" Silver was almost surprised as she handed him his food. He knew he deserved having his sandwich thrown into the lake. "Thanks. Thanks, Lyra."

She nodded. "No problem."

_Apologize, idiot. You can afford to shelve your stupid pride for once._

He grimaced, trying to push away the thought, but it persisted.

"Lyra…" he started slowly, still struggling with himself. It always took a lot of effort for him to apologize to anyone, whether or not they really deserved one. "Look, I got really frustrated earlier today. And I took it out on you, obviously. I mean, I really did think that spending all that time looking for Wobbuffet was a waste, and… You know how… I am… I just-"

Lyra cut off his stumbling words with a brighter smile. "It's okay, Silver. I understand. You hate wasting time on anything you consider useless. It's alright. I'm just glad you aren't angry at me."

Silver blinked. Just like that? He hadn't even managed to sputter out an apology, and she's already forgiven him.

Preoccupied by the thought, he silently started to eat the food Lyra had made for him. It was delicious, by the way. Silver had never really focused on the quality of the food when he was traveling alone. If it was edible, cheap, and easy to store in his bag, he'd eat it. Most often, he would find himself living off of canned soup, instant ramen, granola bars, and jerky. Lyra, he'd learned, carried stuff like that, but also made an attempt to stock up on some fresh foods whenever they stopped in a town. Sneasel also found the aroma of the food quite appealing, and stared at Silver. With a sigh, he broke off a small piece and gave it to Sneasel, just to make him stop- and as a 'thank you' for earlier. The weasel nibbled at the food, eyes closing with appreciation for the flavor.

"So, uh," Lyra started, hoping that she wouldn't make his temper flare up again by starting this conversation. "Well, how was your walk?"

Silver swallowed the bite of sandwich. Now was the time to bring up the strange Pokémon.

"It was alright. Pretty uneventful," he said slowly. Sneasel rolled his eyes at him. He shot a quick glare right back, making sure Lyra didn't see it. "But I saw a Pokémon I never saw before. You have a Pokedex, so I thought I'd ask you."

"Really?" Lyra's interest was piqued. She rummaged through her bag and slipped the bright red hand-held device out of one of the zippered pockets. "D'ya have any idea of what it might be called?"

Silver ran through the sounds that the Pokémon had made. He shrugged. "Uh. Sol-something… No, not really."

"Oh, alright then," she said, tapping the screen with a small stylus. "Give me its main color and its basic shape. Like, if it's humanoid, or snakelike, etc. And if you could give me a general guess of its size, that would be helpful, too."

"White. It was mostly white. It was quadrupedal, too. Probably around four feet tall."

Lyra tapped at the screen again and pressed a couple buttons. She clicked her tongue while waiting for the results of her search, then she held up the screen to Silver's face.

"That one, I think…" he said, pointing to one of the options.

She tapped the option labeled 'Absol' with her stylus. The Pokedex's dry, mechanical voice whirred.

"_Absol, the Disaster Pokémon._ _It has the ability to foretell natural disasters._ _It senses coming disasters and appears before people only to warn them of impending danger. Its life span is over a hundred years."_

"Huh…" Lyra simply said, checking out its other information. She tapped again at the screen, while Silver's heart beat uncomfortably. "It says it was originally from Hoenn, but it's also found in Sinnoh. Some are rumored to be in Johto, but they prefer caves and rocky areas that are a bit secluded. Well, if you saw one in its natural habitat, you must have affirmed those rumors, then."

While Lyra didn't seem the least bit ruffled by the Pokedex's description, Silver felt shaken, as it echoed through his mind.

_It senses coming disasters and appears before people only to warn them of impending danger…_

_I didn't just _see_ an Absol. It sought me out. Was it… warning me of something? Am I in danger? Or-_

He almost jumped when he remembered that Absol had stared off in the direction of Lyra right before he had run off.

_Or is Lyra the one in danger?_

**(~)  
Hey! Look, Silver was actually a bit of a jerk in this chapter! XD**** But then he felt bad about it.  
And the mysterious eyes of doom are revealed. It's an Absol! He'll be relevant later. Not much to say about him now. He's a mysterious fellow with unknown intentions. You'll see.**

***Sly little Sneasel here has nicknames for two very important humans in this story. Sneasnea= Lyra. Sneaselsnea= Silver. Make of of that what you will. x3**

**Also! Dunno if you guys care at all about my life, but I'm planning on making a comic to go with my other long-shot, Darkrai's Redemption. It's officially on hold for a (very) short while, until I get the characters' bios up on my DeviantArt account. Check out my account there, if you wish. Same username as here. I love seeing FF people on DA and vice-versa. 8D**

**Fang the Feraligatr wants you to review. And cream puffs. He also wants cream puffs. Rawr.**

**Later! ~Meta-Akira  
**


	13. Insomnia

**Hey, everybody! Akira here once again! Decided to whip out another chapter this weekend, since this next week is gonna be busy. Hopefully, I can work on the next chapter soon, that's where some of the real action gets geared up. Yay!**

***throws confetti* Guys, we broke thirty reviews with the last chapter! You guys are awesome, and I love ya for it. ^^  
Speaking of reviews, thanks are in order! Doggiefan, Sparks101, .xX, AikoAkahana, and Rakahn: you guys are awesome and thanks for your encouragement! Nothing encourages me more than a simple review. And also, Fang appreciates the donates cream puffs and the blueberry scones! He loves his baked goods. ;D**

**I do NOT own the characters of HG and SS. Derp.**

**Again, as always, read, enjoy, and review!**

**(~)  
**

"Phew, it's nice to be on level ground again," Lyra sighed, stretching her back. The trip towards Blackthorn had been mostly uphill, with ledges to scale, no less. But aside from the occasional slip, the rest of the journey had gone without incident. And there was considerably less amounts of tension between the sixteen-year-old girl and her redheaded companion.

Not that it meant that Silver wasn't tense. Quite the opposite, actually. He still kept thinking about the strange encounter with Absol. It only became more ominous when he heard the mechanical voice of Lyra's Pokedex when he asked her about it later.

"Hey, it looks like Blackthorn is just ahead, Silver!" Lyra exclaimed, throwing one arm out dramatically to point at a few rooftops visible in a small valley up ahead.

"Good. Let's keep moving," he said with a sigh. Over the past few hours since their rest stop, he'd been surreptitiously, but warily, keeping watch. His eyes had been drawn like a magnet towards anything that had moved while they had trekked up the route. He had almost jumped when he nearly convinced himself he saw something, but it turned out to be a Spearow perched in one of the sparse trees.

"You doing alright, Silver? You don't look so good," Lyra observed, her voice instantly dropping its cheerfulness and instead adopting concern. "Are you feeling okay?"

He shifted uneasily in his stance as his heart seemed to jump. He couldn't maintain eye contact with her, for reasons he failed to comprehend. Why did she sound so worried about him? It should be the other way around. Didn't she know her future was stacked against her right now? Didn't she realize that her existence was in a precarious situation?

No, of course not. He was the only one who knew. Well, maybe Falkner had a shred of an idea, but he, Silver, really _knew_.

Lyra had no idea of the danger she was in. So she emanated concern for everyone else's wellbeing but her own. And maybe… his just a bit more than everyone else's.

_What am I thinking? This is Lyra. Lyra. She would be concerned if a total stranger complained of a pain in their leg. And why should I care if she is concerned about me, anyways?_

"Hn. Just tired. Nothing a night of sleep won't cure," he managed to lie, with a shrug. But he still avoided her eyes.

Because he knew that he wouldn't be able to get this out of his mind, even if it _was_ possible for him to sleep tonight.

Lyra bought his excuse, but she still looked at him with some worry. He cleared his throat, trying to get rid of the tint of pink on his face. Luckily, she didn't notice.

"If we keep going at a Slugma's pace like this, it'll be sunset before we get there," he said, managing to sound impatient.

Lyra smiled in response at the return of his normal behavior. "Yeah, I suppose so. Let's get going, then."

They continued on their way, growing closer to the city that was nestled up cozily against the edge of the mountain range that separated Johto from Kanto. The range that cradled the Indigo Plateau and hid it from the rest of the world.

As they descended the rocky hill that overlooked the quiet City of Dragons, Silver swept the area, taking in as much as he could. Just visible behind the distant gym was a glint of bright blue. The pond that separated Dragon's Den from the rest of Blackthorn. Hm. Dragon's Den. It was a Tuesday. A day he normally spent training in the damp cave. Perhaps he could visit there and get some training in before they would move on.

_Maybe Lyra would want to come, too._

He almost paused in mid-step when the thought surfaced. What had brought about that? He shook his head. What did it matter if she came with him or not?

Finally, they finished their descent into the rather modest city that held so much prestige. Not many cities could boast to be the source of an Elite Four member, let alone one who eventually became champion. And the strongest Gym Leader in the Johto League as well. Yet, the city didn't stand out with glitz and eye-catching displays.

"I love Blackthorn, don't you, Silver?"

"Is there a city you don't absolutely love, Lyra?" Silver asked, ignoring her question. He wasn't in the mood to feel as cheerful as she was right now.

"Well, Mahogany Town wasn't really for me. Didn't leave much of an impression, but I guess Team Rocket was to blame for that. Goldenrod is nice, but enormous cities aren't for me so much. There were so many skyscrapers that it made me kind of dizzy when I looked up."

"I meant that to be a rhetorical question, you know," he said flatly. Lyra only chuckled sheepishly.

"Come on, then. The sun is going to set soon, and the sooner I can get this day behind me, the better," he muttered.

They had made their way to the Pokémon Center and requested a place to stay the night.

"I'm sorry," the Nurse Joy said, bowing her head apologetically. "We don't have that many rooms here in Blackthorn since so few people can get here through the Ice Path. Would it be too much to ask for you to both take a room? There are two beds in each."

"Oh, no not at all," Lyra said, shaking her head. "Well, as long as you're okay with it, Silver."

He merely shrugged. He was of two minds right now. On one hand, he knew he would have to feign sleep so that Lyra wouldn't wake up. On the other hand, after what had happened today, he would appreciate being able to stay close to where she was to keep an eye on things.

"Thanks much!" Lyra chirped to the Nurse, who handed her a key with the number two on it. And with that, she led the way down the hallway, which was notably shorter than the Centers in Azalea and Violet.

Lyra stopped at the second door and inserted the key into the lock. As she opened the door, Silver couldn't help but be a little impressed.

Yes, evidently, the Pokémon Center didn't need to have nearly as many rooms as its predecessors in Johto, since so few trainers made it this far. But it was rather obvious that while the Center lacked quantity, it made up for it in quality. He supposed that the funds brought in by both the most powerful Gym Leader in the region and Ex-Champion Lance allowed the Center to have much larger rooms.

Heck, two of Azalea's small rooms could have fit in this one, probably. A navy spiral rug swathed most of the dark, hardwood floor. The walls, instead of the standard, bland white, were painted a rich reddish-brown, almost a mahogany color. Two twin sized beds with frames made of cherry wood stood on either side of the room. A painting of the shrine within Dragon's Den, guarded by the twisting form of an elegant Dragonair was perched on one of the walls. A large map of Johto and Kanto was placed on the opposite wall. On the far side of one wall, a door to what must be a bathroom was placed. On the far side of the room, a large window was placed, framed by navy drapes. Situated before it was a modest coffee table and two wooden chairs, all made of cherry.

The room itself was luxurious, but not in a ritzy way. Rather, it was luxurious in a way that was warm, inviting, and homey. Lyra immediately headed over to the bed on the right and sat back in it, sighing with apparent relief. Silver placed his bag on the floor as Lyra slipped off her shoes and socks, and placed her white hat on one of the bed posts.

"I'm going to go take a shower. That alright with you?" she glanced over at him, as he sat in one of the chairs near the coffee table. He nodded, and she smiled as she grabbed some stuff from her bag and went into the bathroom. A few minutes later brought the sound of the squeak of a spigot and the torrential spray of a showerhead.

Silver sighed and looked aimlessly out the large window. He could see the river they crossed only about half an hour ago to reach the small city. He got up and pulled the navy drapes closed before changing into his bed clothes. He detached the pokeballs from his belt and placed them on the table. He picked up one of them, and looked at it, rolling it around between his fingers. He fingered the release button on the capsule, and a flash of light emerged from the open halves.

It became the form of a thick, purple ghost with a feline grin and spikes running down his back. Silver frowned as he felt the temperature of the room plummet ten degrees.

"Gengar," the Pokémon chuckled, smiling widely.

"I'm letting you loose for a while tonight," Silver explained. "I want you to watch out for anything suspicious. Wake me if you see anything."

Gengar nodded, his smile now looking even more mischievous. Silver noticed and his mercury eyes narrowed.

"And for God's sake, don't go pulling pranks on Nurse Joy while we're here. You're to stay out of sight, understand me?"

Gengar rolled his eyes, muttering his name in a way that suspiciously sounded like 'spoilsport'. But the ghost reluctantly nodded and faded into the floor. Silver glared at the spot where he disappeared for a moment or two, but his scolding gaze came to an end when he heard the spray of water in the bathroom come to a sudden stop. He ran a hand through his red hair, still thinking over things in his mind.

He heard the unlatching of the door, and Lyra came out, running a brush through her towel-dried hair. She was wearing a matching set of loose pajamas, light blue in color. The pants were long, and the shirt was short-sleeved and button-up. Both were patterned with clouds, yellow stars and crescent moons. She left her hair down and dragged her fingers through it to get rid of the rest of the snarls.

She swept past the coffee table, and Silver thought he caught a waft of something that smelled like vanilla. She practically jumped onto her bed, flopping back on it and stretching, before allowing herself to sink into the mattress. She groaned appreciatively, snuggling her head into the soft, down-filled pillow.

Silver turned his head away, feeling pink in the face. Damn, why was that happening more often now? He pretended to be totally engrossed in examining the Dragon Shrine painting on the wall.

"Ugh, after poking around in a cave, walking uphill and climbing those ledges, it feels great to be able lie down," Lyra sighed in contentment. She glanced at her silent rival. "So what's the game plan? I think it's only fair for you to choose where to go train next, since I flubbed this one."

Silver winced and finally looked back at her.

"I did apologize for being a total jerk, right?" Silver questioned, slightly apprehensive.

"Yeah, you apologized. But it's okay, Silver. Your reaction was pretty justified. So you should be able to choose the next spot," she said, looking at him with her bright cinnamon eyes.

"Well, if you say so. I think that we should just keep going the way we were going. Let's head into Ice Path. I want to work with Meganium and Crobat on getting their resistance up against the cold," he explained.

"So that Fang's Ice Beam won't be as much of a threat?" Lyra suggested with a knowing smile.

Silver rolled his eyes. Of course that was precisely his thinking. Lyra's Feraligatr was destructive against his team enough as it was, even without the option of super-effective moves.

"You saw right through me. Am I that predictable?"

"Nah. I just know you too well," she responded cheerfully with a smile. Silver found that he once again needed to look away from her and began meticulously examining the painting again. That flip in his stomach was starting to get on his nerves.

"Um… Hey, Silver?"

"What?" He stated the word instead of asking it.

"Could we stay in Blackthorn one more day before heading out? There's… well…

The peculiar tone in her voice made him drag his eyes back onto her once more. She sounded like she was trying to cover up a bit of unease. She was fiddling with a lock of her loose hair, not looking him the eyes. He immediately felt worried.

"Why, what's wrong?" Silver instantly felt awkward when he noticed how much urgent concern was in his voice. Lyra noticed it too, and locked gazes with him again, slight confusion in her eyes.

_Dang. I'm getting too paranoid._

"Nothing's wrong," she started slowly. It didn't sound the most convincing, but Silver was too preoccupied to notice. "I just have a few things I want to do before we head off, and it might take some time. And that way, you can get in some training at Dragon's Den while I'm out, if you'd like."

"Hn. Fine," he said, now sounding more tired than anything else.

o0O0o0O0o

Silver sat quietly in his bed, staring blankly at the ceiling, fingers laced together behind his head.

He couldn't sleep.

Major plot twist.

He'd managed to snatch about two hours or so of restless sleep, but it had been sporadic, and he'd been jolted out of his light doze by the mere rustle of the wind or the sound of the nurse quietly padding down the hall. It was obvious that he would continue to be plagued.

He ran a hand through his hair in aggravation. Even the night before this one, in Violet City, he'd had trouble sleeping. This made three nights in a row.

He knew if he continued the streak, he wouldn't have the stamina to go through Ice Path the day after tomorrow. Wait, no. Scratch that. The clock read 1:57. Tomorrow.

Ugh, this was frustrating. And he couldn't risk tossing around on his bed to find a more comfortable position without the risk of waking Lyra from her sleep. She'd zonked out in her bed not too long after they had switched off the lights.

Why was his mind depriving him of sleep? It wouldn't help him in the slightest. He wouldn't get any closer to figuring things out by making himself exhausted. After all that had been going on the past few days, he felt like he should be entitled to at least one night of sound sleep. But no, he felt more aware than ever.

With an inaudible sigh of frustration, he sat up and dangled his legs off the side of his bed. He listened to the steady, soft sound of Lyra's repetitive breathing to make sure she hadn't been alerted by his movement.

"Gengar," he whispered almost soundlessly.

After a few moments of silence, the shadow of the coffee table shifted, and Gengar rose silently from it.

Silver was used to the sudden chill in temperature that his Pokémon brought, so he thought nothing of it.

"I can't sleep, so I'm going for a walk," he half-whispered, half-mouthed. "Please do me a favor and keep an eye on Lyra while I'm gone."

Gengar, though puzzled by this request, saluted his trainer cheekily, continuing to give him his wide, toothy grin.

Silver slipped on his jacket over his black night shirt, and grabbed his bag out of precautionary habit. He was about to head out the door, but he paused to turn his gaze on his rival across the room. He winced when he saw that the drop in temperature had been enough to cause her to curl up into a tight ball. The comforter lay scrunched near her feet and wasn't covering her at all at the moment. His jaw clenched, disliking the side effect that the mere presence of his Gengar brought on.

Then, he found himself moving back towards her. Before he could register what he was doing, he had grabbed the wrinkled edge of the comforter and gently pulled it back over her, so she was covered. He noticed her tensed shoulders relax when the warm, dark blue blanket was replaced.

Then… for a brief moment… He felt protective…

However, the feeling left as swiftly as it came, and he ducked his head away, suddenly feeling self-conscious of his deed. He saw Gengar staring at him with wide red eyes, grin gone and mouth slightly agape due to the surprise of his trainer's actions.

"Not a word," Silver mouthed with a glare. Gengar merely blinked before his master slipped stealthily out the door.

Silver slunk quietly out of the darkened Pokémon Center, and breathed in deeply when he was hit with the crisp, cool air of the clear night. He could just barely see the vapor of his breath. It wasn't extremely cold out, but he knew that the chill was more pronounced here because of the Ice Path nearby.

His legs moved automatically. He needed a spot to gather his thoughts. It just so happened that Blackthorn had just the place for him, where he could go in the middle of the night without worrying about disturbing anyone.

**(~)  
Ah hah! Tossed in a bit more fluff for those of you who wanted romance. Granted, it's not much right now, but I don't like rushing into stuff like that. Then it seems more hormone-influenced than anything else, really. :P**

**Planned on making this chapter longer, but I decided to stop it here for the sake of my insomnia-suffering self. I kinda know how Silver feels with all that sleep deprivation. Blarg.**

**Hurr, in other news, I pre-ordered Black Version. For the sake of getting Reshiram. But I'll need to trade someone in order to get my beloved Braviary. Also, my scanner is being a jerk. *kicks***

**SoulSilver Recommendations, we haven't had those for a while, have we?**** Well here they are:****  
Longshots~  
"Infiltrate" by Sparks101 (This one has only just started not long ago.)  
"Stockholm" by Liz Hollow (More action and twists in this one. Liz Hollow's awesome!)  
"If I Lost on Purpose, Would You Stop Following Me?" by MarlinMarlen (Wackiest. SS fic. In all of creation. You won't stop laughing. Ever.)**

**One-Shots~  
"Garbage" by The Finesseful X (Sweet and nicely written, loved it.)  
"Withering Pink" by Zenny-DoLL (Emotional, not really romance, but still a good read.)**

**Anyways, that's all for now. Fang wants you to review. He also is partial to white chocolate. Rawr.  
See ya! ~Meta-Akira  
**


	14. Reassure

**Heya! Akira is back once again with another installment of Time's Design (as if it wasn't obvious).**

**I'm really excited you guys. Enraptured. Ecstatic. Euphoric. And those are just the "E" synonyms!  
Why? The last chapter alone got eight (count 'em!) reviews! And the number of reviews total was boosted past forty! I want to hug every single one of you guys! 3  
But since I can only virtually glomp people on FanFiction, I'll just thank you guys instead! ^^  
Big thanks to my regular reviewers, along with any new ones: MarlinMarlen, Sparks101, AikoAkahana, DittoGirl553, Remey2, Splitheart1120, I Lov3 Wizardmon, and Fuffeh!  
You guys are all so awesome!**

**In the spirit of Valentine's Day, I offer this next chapter (there's not any direct romance, though. Don't kill me). **

**This next chapter and I have a love/hate relationship. I really don't like the first half, but I totally LOVE the second half. The first half seems a little rushed and filler-ish, because I didn't want to skip right to Silver coming back from Dragon's Den. And... well, you guys tell me what you think.**

**I do not own the characters of HG and SS.**

**Please read, enjoy, review. ^^  
(~)**

The silence of the cave wasn't the standard sort of silence. It was the kind of silence that had the drone of gushing waterfalls, gurgling whirlpools, and the gentle slapping of obsidian-black waves against the shore of solid stone. It was a noisy, yet solitary silence, and Silver was grateful for it.

Without the sound of the water, he'd be reminded too much of his nightmare. And complete silence would have also meant that he would be left to fend helplessly against the cacophony of his own thoughts. Why did his brain have to betray him in times like these?

Oh well.

"Return, Crobat," Silver uttered quietly, jumping to the wooden planks of the dock with noiseless footfalls. His mode of transportation, since he had no Pokémon who knew Surf, disappeared back into his ball with a flash of red light.

And Silver was left alone in the waterlogged cavern. Moonlight streamed half-heartedly into several large gaps in the craggy ceiling. Besides the ever-lit lanterns that hung on the four corners of the shrine, the moonlight was all that provided light in the dank place that was Dragon's Den.

Silver looked around morosely, then sank to the ground with a sigh.

This place was a sort of haven for him. It had a sort of atmosphere that could calm him and allow him to think more clearly. Why else would he come here twice a week to train, rather than scaling Mount Silver or having rematches with the Gym Leaders in Viridian City?

Well, his face darkened at the last thought, the fact that he had unpleasant memories embedded in Viridian probably made the idea of going there strike out automatically. But Dragon's Den was the only place where he could train while feeling so… at ease.

Perhaps it was the location and the fact that so few were allowed entry. After all, even though he might hold disdain for Lance's equally-costumed cousin, he wouldn't be the last to admit that she was very powerful, and that few could defeat her and thus gain the privilege to enter Dragon's Den. Perhaps it was the idea that the Den was guarded by the dragons who dwelled here, hidden in its watery depths. Perhaps it was the presence of the shrine itself that lent the enormous cave a sense of peace that shrouded everything when battles were done and over with.

Whatever it was, it was a relief to Silver, who wanted, more than anything right now, a little peace of mind.

o0O0o0O0o

Silver had lost track of how long he had been sitting there, his back against one of the posts on the pier. The only way he could keep some basic sense of time was by the angles of the moonbeams that filtered through and hit the glassy black water and the far walls. Slowly, so that one could only notice it if they hadn't been staring at them the whole while, they had crept from one end to the other.

Silver sat in a half-dozing trance. Time seemed to slip by quickly, but his eyes were open the whole time. He'd never been here overnight before. But it seemed to have its perks.

He was quite sure that several times, he had seen a few Dratini make splashing jumps out of the water, the moonlight briefly glinting over their serpentine bodies before the quite waves swallowed them up again as they played.

He jerked his head up as suddenly as if someone had shouted in his ear. He had nearly nodded off. The moonlight was still quite strong, but it had swung far over to one side of the cave, so he was certain that it was only a few hours until sunrise. But now, he could feel the presence of someone else invade the cave.

He tensed up, dragging himself to his feet to see the newcomer face to face. There appeared to be a large pillar in the water, coming towards him. He blinked and rubbed the drowsiness from his eyes. No, it was a Gyarados.

Dang, had Lyra woken up and come out to search for him on the back of her crimson beast?

No… No, as a shaft of moonlight hit the Atrocious Pokémon, he saw that the enormous serpent's scales gleamed the standard blue instead of the unusual ruby. That wasn't Garnet, Lyra's Gyarados. He tensed again. Gyarados were dangerous. It took a skilled trainer to tame one, or at least manipulate and direct one's rage.

And if this trainer happened to be someone he didn't want to meet in the dead of night, well, he would be screwed.

"Ah! Who goes there?" cried an authoritative voice so suddenly that Silver jumped. "If you have not defeated me in battle, then you have not the privilege of setting foot in Dragon's Den! Show yourself!"

Whoever it was that was riding on the back of the Gyarados took a flying leap off the monster's spiny crest, landing on the dock with ease.

He sighed, at once feeling both relief and annoyance. At least it wasn't someone who was an enemy. Though, with the way he had enraged her before, she might not hesitate in attempting to battle him.

"Calm down," he said, rolling his metallic eyes. "I'm not here to poach Dratini or anything stupid like that."

"Hey, I know that arrogant voice," she said with a note of accusation as she returned her Gyarados.

_Arrogant?_

She stepped closer, and Silver saw long, blue hair pulled up into a ponytail. A black and blue cape swirled behind her, and he found himself looking Johto's eighth Gym Leader in the face.

"You. You're that egocentric smart-mouth that I faced off against with Lance," she said, looking at him with remembrance and faint dislike in her eyes.

"And you're the high-and-mighty woman with the passion for crazy costumes," he replied coolly. He was exhausted and in no mood to be cordial. Clair's eyes narrowed. Obviously, she did not share her cousin's trait of being able to let any insults roll off her back.

"I'd watch it, you little Wurmple," she said, crossing her arms.

"I prefer the name Silver, actually," he retorted, sounding bored.

"And I would prefer if you gave me the respect my position deserves," Clair warned. Silver merely shrugged.

"You started it with the name-calling, not me."

Clair gritted her jaw. It was clear that had Silver not defeated her before, she would have enjoyed kicking him out of _her_ sanctuary. But she just huffed and turned on her heel, cape swishing with her movements as she tried to ignore his company and act as though this were any ordinary night.

Easier said than done. Clair had not entirely dropped her prideful attitude. She still took losses hard, and was visibly reluctant to admit defeat without crying foul. So she was not about to train and possibly divulge her dragon-taming secrets to this… this… She shook her head, not bothering to finish the thought. But frustration was evident on her face.

Silver was annoyed, too, but he managed to disguise it much better than the Gym Leader did.

Finally, Clair's patience (now there's a bit of an oxymoron) broke. She turned back to face Silver, who was still staring off into the distance, ignoring her much more effectively than she had been ignoring him.

"Well, since it's obvious that I will not be able to progress while you are around, would you mind revealing to me the purpose of you loitering in this sacred place in the hours of predawn?"

Silver didn't even look at her as he replied. "Would _you_ mind if I asked you to stop talking like your cousin? It's obnoxious that you try to do everything like he does. You're not Lance, so stop acting like you are!"

"How dare you?" Clair asked in shock. "I do _not _try to emulate every action he does. I am my own person!"

"Oh really?" Silver asked sarcastically, looking back at the older woman. "Let's see. Lance is a dragon-tamer. So are you. He placed in the Kanto Elite Four. You went to get a Gym Leader's position after. He wears a cape. You model your ridiculous outfits after him! He speaks with a wide vocabulary, and you copy him! In fact, the only damn differences are that he's more powerful and more successful, and when he loses, he loses gracefully and doesn't get pissed off!"

_Didn't you do that to Lyra, though?_

He angrily shoved away the nagging thought.

Clair looked stunned, and it took a few minutes for her to find her tongue.

"How dare you?" she asked again, but she looked a bit shaken. "How dare you lecture me on this? Lance told me about you before we met. Her said that he defeated you once, and that instead of taking the defeat, you turned on your own Pokémon and treated them harshly. You refused to acknowledge Lance as the victor."

Silver grimaced. It had not been his shining moment. That was for sure.

"Yeah? Well I changed."

Clair grimaced. "You have no idea what it's like."

Silver felt an influx of anger at this statement, and he responded vehemently, his fists balling up.

"I know what it feels like to live in someone's shadow. I've lived in someone else's shadow my whole damn life!" Silver blurted. He gritted his teeth, preventing himself from continuing and exposing who his family was. He took a deep breath in an attempt to control his anger, but his voice still shook with contained fury. "And I learned the hard way that acting just like that person was not the way to escape from the shadow. I had to be someone else. I had to be myself."

Clair just stared at him. He glared back, but was surprised when she sighed, her shoulders slumping.

"When I was younger, me and my older cousin were great friends," she said, and Silver noticed that the venom in her voice was gone, and she was talking normally, without the formal use of language she'd been using earlier. "I looked up to him. So when he decided to be like the elders and train dragons, I decided I'd do that too, when I was old enough. But when I finally got my Dratini, his was already a Dragonair. When I had gotten my Dratini to evolve, he had a Dragonite, and a two more Dragonair. When I finally had completed my training, the elders still hadn't approved of me, and Lance had found a place in the Elite Four. A year later, he was Champion, and I had only managed to become a Gym Leader. I thought that if I was more like him, I'd be stronger and more successful. I guess I tried to get out of his shadow the wrong way," she sighed, a tinge of irritation present in it.

"Did Lance's lecture actually get to you, then?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No, not really. Well, it helped a bit, but it wasn't him," Silver replied with a shake of his head.

Clair smirked with a sudden epiphany.

"Oh, not Lance, then? Maybe some other person. A girl we both know, perhaps?"

Even though the question had no hidden implications, Silver felt heat rising to his cheeks. He gave Clair a brief scowl before gazing at the water again. Clair needed no further confirmation.

"So what are you doing here, then? I come here early every morning before I open the gym, and I've never seen you sitting around here before," she said, deciding to stick her nose into the issue and find out why he would be here, alone, not training, at four in the morning.

"Is it any of your business?" Silver asked reluctantly.

"Somewhat. I agreed to protect this place, so I'll make it my business," Clair said with a sneer.

Silver groaned in aggravation.

"I needed to be alone for a while, okay?" he hissed, if only to quell the caped Gym Leader's curiosity.

"Alone?" Clair's face showed confusion. "You mean you were with someone?"

It was too late to cover his slip-up now. Grinding his teeth in frustration, he nodded.

"Who?"

Silver just continued to glare at her. And then she made the connection. Her smirk split her face again.

"You? Traveling with Lyra?"

Silver decided that he didn't like the woman's smug grin.

"It's a temporary thing, all right? We're doing some training together. That's all," Silver explained waspishly. Clair put her hands up at shoulder height.

"No need to get defensive about you and Lyra. Although I _did_ have the sneaking suspicion that you-"

"I need to get going," Silver said as he stood up, effectively cutting her off. This only seemed to amuse her. He inwardly cursed as he released his Crobat so that the he could carry Silver to the other side of the watery cave.

"Alright then. Hope you do well in your training, Silver," Clair said, extending her hand towards him much like Lance had done some time ago in this very same place. Silver looked at it, then ultimately shook her hand.

He nodded at the older woman, then climbed onto four-winged bat's back. As he headed out, Clair muttered one last thing that he didn't hear.

"I wish you and Lyra the best of luck."

o0O0o0O0o

_Well, at least she doesn't hate my very existence anymore… I think…_

Silver jumped the short distance from Crobat's back to the ground in front of the Pokémon Center. No solutions had presented themselves to him while he'd sat in Dragon's Den, but his mind was more at ease. At least he would be able to glean a few hours of sleep today, since Lyra wanted to stick around Blackthorn while she did her mysterious errands.

He sleepily dragged his fingers through his hair as he trudged into the dark, quiet Pokémon Center. So few trainers managed to get to Blackthorn that the Nurse had gone to her room to sleep, but a bell served as a way of waking up a dozing Chansey who sat behind the counter.

Ignoring the sleeping, egg-shaped creature, he quietly made his way to his room. He reached for the handle before remembering that he had locked it. With a sigh, he dug one hand into his coat pocket, feeling the cool, jagged metal brush against his fingertips. He pulled out the keyring, which jingled faintly, when he heard a sudden shriek, followed by a loud thud.

"Lyra!"

Silver's eyes flew wide open, as thousands of horrifying scenarios flew through his head. Kidnap and assault were the ones that most occupied his mind. He jammed the key in the lock frantically, fumbling with the doorknob in a frenzied state for a paralyzing ten seconds, cursing rapidly before he managed to hear the _click_ of the lock. He slammed the door open with unnecessary force and scanned the room anxiously. He felt his heart jolt when he saw a crumpled heap lying on the floor next to Lyra's bed, and automatically assumed the worst.

"Lyra," he breathed as he rushed over to the heap and shook what he was sure was Lyra's shoulder. "Lyra, are you alright?"

A light groan came from the girl, and he felt an incredible sense of relief when he noticed her stirring. Her movements were hampered by the fact that she was completely tangled up in her blanket, but eventually her face surfaced, and he glimpsed her cinnamon eyes blinking up at him in surprise.

"Silver…? You're here…" He took note of the fact that her voice trembled just slightly, and he managed to pick up a trace of fear.

"Lyra, are you alright? What the heck happened?" Silver's eyes flashed concern, and a slight bit of anger directed towards whatever it was that had scared her.

"I… I woke up, and you weren't here… I didn't see you, so… so I called you, but you weren't here… Then two huge, red eyes popped up in front of me. I-I guess I was so freaked out that I fell out of my bed," she explained in a bit of a daze.

Well, that explained the loud thud he had heard earlier. But what was this about a pair of huge, red eyes popping up out of nowh-

Wait.

_Wait._

"Dammit, Gengar. Get your spiky, purple behind out here. _Now_," he uttered lowly, his anger more pronounced.

He ignored Lyra's lost stare, and his glaring eyes narrowed when he saw the ghost rise slowly out of the shadow of the coffee table.

He had nearly forgotten about releasing Gengar and asking him to keep an eye on Lyra until he had gotten back.

"Did you scare Lyra, you piece of-"  
"Silver," Lyra managed to scold him, despite being so tired and bewildered.

He ignored her, and leered at the ghost. Gengar tried to look apologetic, but he couldn't hide his wide grin. He couldn't help finding pleasure in scaring someone, whether or not he had intended on doing it.  
"I swear, I'll set Sneasel on you with a few Faint Attacks," he growled in threat. Gengar merely laughed guiltily. Silver rolled his eyes in exasperation. He promptly grabbed the empty pokeball on the table and returned the chuckling ghost fiercely. He then looked back at Lyra, who was rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. She had bumped it when she had fallen off of her bed. She met Silver's eyes and looked away abruptly, darkness hiding the pink tinge on her face.

Silver was confused by the fact that she looked ashamed and relieved at the same time.

"There's something you aren't telling me, isn't there?" he asked quietly. Lyra winced and bit her lip nervously. He sighed and took a seat on the floor next to her blanket-ensnared figure.

Silence spiraled.

"Well?" he asked, and she started. "Are you going to tell me or not?"

"I was… worried. I kept waking up every once and a while, and I felt like something was missing. Then… I woke up again and looked around to stop my worrying and… you weren't there," she whispered the last sentence. Silver frowned. Why would that bother her so much?

"I stayed awake, but I didn't move, thinking that maybe you were in the bathroom, or taking a short walk. But a couple hours passed and you still weren't back."

"I went to Dragon's Den for a while. I couldn't sleep, so I thought some fresh air would help. I ended up staying longer than I thought I would," he explained. Lyra nodded, but it was more of a quick jerk of the head, as if she was trying to convince herself of his words.

"I-I was a little worried that something happened to you, or that maybe you got sick of me and up and left, and I… got… scared."

Silver felt guilt wash over him. But he couldn't see why she had gotten so worried. She knew he could take care of himself easily, even without Pokémon if push came to shove. And why would she worry about him leaving her? Better yet, why would the idea of him leaving scare her?

He wanted to ask her these questions, but he was certain that now was a bad time. He found that, strangely, what he was more focused on was the fact that her eyes were, indeed, clouded with worry and a hint of fear. And he didn't like it. It made something in him clench uncomfortably, and all he could think about was making that fear go away.

"Psh, I know I'm a first-class jerk, but I wouldn't do something _that_ inconsiderate," he said with a huff, trying to get her to lighten up. It half-worked. She smiled, but it was a rueful smile. He inwardly grimaced, trying to think of something else that would bring her real smile back on her face, where it fit best.

For what seemed like the hundredth time tonight, he let a sigh escape from his lips. Hesitantly, he reached out and gripped her shoulders. Lyra blinked, but she still didn't make eye contact with her red-headed rival.

"Lyra," he said firmly. "Lyra, look at me."

She tentatively obeyed so he could look her square in the eye.

"Now you listen to me," he snapped forcefully. "You asked me to come train with you, and I agreed to it. I may have been a jerk, a thief, and an ignorant, arrogant, prick in the past. That's all true. But there's one thing I never do, and that is to break my word. Especially to you. Got that?"

Lyra blinked again. Silver continued to stare her down, forcing himself to ignore his accelerated heart rate. No, to look away now might make her think that he was bluffing just to gloss over things. That was unacceptable.

"Why… especially to me?" Lyra asked in slight confusion.

Now it was Silver's turn to blink. He struggled to get some words together in his mind, since the question caught him unprepared. He knew that he meant the statement, but… why?

"Listen, you. We've been rivals ever since our first day of training. You've always managed to defeat me, even when I looked down on your methods. You kept my arrogance in check, you showed me how and why I was wrong, and you were genuinely nice to me the whole freaking time. If there's anyone in the world who deserves to have my word kept, and if that person's not you, then I have no freaking clue who that person could be."

Lyra stared at him speechlessly. He fidgeted under her gaze, suddenly feeling uncomfortable. Then, after a painfully awkward moment, Lyra reached out and hugged him tightly.

"Thank you, Silver," she whispered, her anxieties practically gone.

Silver, who had gone rigid for a half-second, relaxed into the hug and returned the embrace. He felt a peculiar warmth spread through him, as well as the protectiveness he had felt earlier. It was extremely new to him, and he had no idea of how to react to it.

_But,_ his exhausted mind concluded,_ it's certainly not an unpleasant feeling…_

"Hm, you're welcome," he replied shortly, before breaking off the hug. "But I'm going to go to sleep."

He helped her up off the floor so the poor girl could disentangle herself from the navy comforter before heading back to his own bed. He flopped down onto it, and before he could remove his jacket or bid goodnight to Lyra, his eyelids slid closed, and his consciousness slipped away into the distant realm of sleep.

**(~)  
Well, there it is. Hope you liked it, because that first half I'm not 100% sure on.**

**SS story recommendations:  
Longshots:  
"Infiltrate" by Sparks101  
"Stockholm" by Liz Hollow (Completed, and awesome!)  
"If I Lost on Purpose, Would You Stop Following Me?" by MarlinMarlen  
"Follow Me" by SakuraMota  
"Tell Me" by **

**One-shots:  
Just read the one-shots by NicoleGoldstein13. They're awesome!**

**Fang wants you to review, and he wishes each of you a Happy St. Valentine's Day. Rawr.**

**See ya later! ~Meta-Akira  
**


	15. Ice

**Hi! Akira here!  
So sorry for the month-long wait for this chapter! (I just managed to figure out how to update this despite all the error trouble. Thanks, SakuraMota, you're a life saver! 8D)  
This particular chapter gave me SO much trouble. It seemed to fight me nearly every step of the way, because I was so focused on the chapter that comes after this one. Apologies to all you who patiently waited!**

**FIFTY REVIEWS! ACTUALLY, MORE THAN THAT! I received _fifteen_ reviews for last chapter. My goodness, I love all of you guys! 8'D  
Thanks are due to all my wonderful reviewers: BlackLightconvicted, splitheart1120, doggiefan, Sparks101, GreenPokeGuy, AikoAkahana, MarlinMarlen, PaulAndBarrysWhenever123, NicoleGoldstein13, I Lov3 Wizardmon, TheGreatProphet283, Rakahn, Cornelia Fox, Blood-Sucker-1428, and Chi Yagami.**

**Special thanks and the dedication of this chapter goes to Cornelia Fox specifically. We had a nice chat over PM, and it managed to inspire me enough to finish up this chapter. And, Cornelia Fox even said that some fan art might be created for this story.  
Thank you, thank you, _thank you!_ *hug***

**Ummm... Oh yes! I got Pokemon Black version. And I pretty much confirmed to myself that N is awesome, and that Ferriswheelshipping (N/White) now holds the honored spot of my second favorite game pairing ever! 8D  
Team Plasma's encounter music is awesome. Silver's encounter music is still my favorite, but Plasma, despite how annoying the grunts can be, has a real kick-butt theme song. Blows the other teams' theme songs outta the water.  
Also, Minccino. They are my favorite Pokemon of the fifth Generation. _Ever._**

**One last thing. During one particular scene in this chapter, I was inspired by the ice scene from one of the few "chick flicks" I like, While You Were Sleeping. Love that movie to pieces.**

**I do not own the characters of HG and SS.**

**(~)  
**

Silver shifted around on his bed, trying to get more comfortable. Goodness knows he needed the sleep. Not even bothering to open his eyes, he mashed his pillow into a more comfortable and supportive shape before rolling over and trying to get back to sleep.

…Which was a pretty hard feat when a large, green sauropod wouldn't stop nudging him- _hard._

"Gah!" The teenager instinctively curled up to protect his vulnerable abdomen after a particularly rough headbutt to his stomach. He reluctantly cracked open one tired eye to glare at the perpetrator.

He met the golden gaze of his Meganium, who was getting impatient from waiting for his master to wake up.

_He must have released himself from his pokeball…_

"What's your problem, you huge pansy?" Silver groaned.

Meganium snorted, antennae twitching with eagerness to get going. Silver continued to scowl at him, but when nothing fruitful came of it, her rolled over onto his other side to face the wall.

"Whatever, I'm going back to sleep," he murmured groggily.

He probably would have succeeded in his attempt, but his Meganium clearly was having none of it. He quietly extended his long neck, reached carefully over towards the still form of his trainer, and oh-so gently grabbed the back of Silver's jacket collar in his mouth.

All that was needed to persuade the redhead, in Meganium's opinion, was just one nice, healthy yank.

"GAH-ooph!"

Silver found himself forcibly pulled from his bed and landing across the room after Meganium decided to let go halfway through the swing. Whoops. Maybe that had been a bit _too_ healthy of a yank. Oh well, at least he was out of bed and awake.

"You stupid creature," Silver huffed, rubbing his shoulder as he managed to bring himself to his feet. Meganium merely shrugged as a half-hearted apology and Silver sighed in defeated annoyance.

"I guess I won't be able to get any more sleep with _you_ around," he grumbled, and Meganium nodded his head in a chipper fashion.

The teenager rolled his eyes and noticed that Lyra had left, her bed all made, as if no one had been there at all last night. A note had been left on the coffee table next to a plate of breakfast food.

Dear Silver,

I'll probably be out all day today. I told you I have some important things to do before we leave tomorrow. I'm not exactly sure about when I'll get back. But expect me sometime in the evening.

I got up around eight o'clock this morning, but you looked pretty exhausted, so I decided to let you sleep. I brought you some breakfast from the cafeteria, and I hope it's still warm when you wake up.

I'll see you later today.

And thanks for talking to me last night. Sorry if I worried you.

~Lyra

Silver placed the note back on the table and examined the breakfast laid out on a plate. It was stone cold. He checked the time on the clock- 12:06. Yeesh, he never usually slept in that late. He heard an eruption of grumbling, and Meganium gave him a sheepish look.

Oh, so _that_ was why Meganium had wanted him awake so badly.

He glanced at the cold eggs, toast, and bacon, feeling bad that Lyra had gone through the trouble. But he couldn't let them go to waste. He looked back over at a rather impatient Meganium.

"Tch, I see that look you're giving me. Go ahead and eat it, if you'd like. I'd rather go and find some lunch," he commented with indifference. Meganium brightened before going to scarf down the food, not minding its lack of heat one bit.

Silver ignored the table manners of his starter as he quickly changed out of his bed clothes and into his regular apparel, thinking all the while.

What on earth could Lyra be doing that would take until late afternoon? If it wasn't training in Dragon's Den, what could it be?

Smoothing out a wrinkle in his red-trimmed black shirt, he looked over at Meganium as the green sauropod finished scarfing down the cold meal. Meganium quickly licked the plate clean with one swipe of his tongue.

"Come on, you lousy pansy," Silver gestured to the creature "We're probably going to spend a lot more time in Ice Path than we did in Dark Cave, so we'd better stock up on things we might need while we have the chance."

o0O0o0O0o

The rest of the afternoon passed without much incident. Silver had bought supplies he had thought would be necessary for extensive training in Ice Path, then spent the rest of his day in Dragon's Den.

Lyra reappeared at the Center somewhere around nine o'clock.

"So where have you been?" Silver questioned after the girl returned and changed, looking tired, and half-frustrated, half-pleased.

"Around," Lyra said evasively. "I told you I had errands to do."

"I'd like to know what these 'errands' are, if you don't mind," Silver said in an unimpressed tone.

"Really, it's nothing you need to worry about," she said with a shrug. "I was just doing some stuff that I think might be helpful later on."

"You're avoiding the question, aren't you?" Silver said with a hint of accusation in his voice.

"Listen, it's just something that isn't too important, and I'd rather not talk about it. Please, Silver," she pleaded quietly.

As much as he wanted to press the issue, he sighed a quick "whatever" as his rival flipped onto her side and closed her eyes, wishing him a good night.

_I know one thing…_

The thought floated through his head as he stared at the ceiling before he managed to fall asleep for once.

_Lyra's hiding something from me…_

o0O0o0O0o

Silver was vaguely surprised that he woke without any remembrance of vivid nightmares. He hadn't gotten an extremely restful night's sleep, but it had been uninterrupted, which was a bit of a scarcity for him these days. And at this point, he would take what he could get.

He was about to sit up, when a pillow abruptly made an impromptu landing place on his face.

"Wake up, Silver," he heard Lyra's cheerful voice past the pillow that obstructed his vision. "Ice Path training today, and we want to get an early start!"

He groaned, flinging the pillow back at her, only for her to dodge and let it go sailing past her head. Of course.

"I _was_ just about to get up, when you had to throw a pillow at my face," he grumbled, sitting up.

"Well, it doesn't matter now. All that matters is that you're up and we can get going!"

Half an hour later found them trekking up the path towards a sheer rocky cliff. The only possible way forward, other than the suicidal scaling of said sheer rocky cliff, was through the gaping gash in its side. From several yards, they could already feel a chilling cold waft over them, ebbing from the opening.

If Silver had been paying more attention, he might have noticed the fact that Lyra's abrupt shudder might have less to do with the cold than he thought. But he wasn't, so they plunged into the natural freezer that served as the only link between Mahogany and Blackthorn.

At once, their breath misted up before their eyes as they looked around at the ice-rimmed walls. Everything, even some patches of the floor, was coated in ice. Treacherous footing for any trainer, even those who were experienced with many a trip through the path.

"You can let your Pokémon out now," Lyra said as she turned to him. "When they adjust enough, we can go deeper into the cave where it's colder. That sound good to you?"

Silver suppressed the natural urge to shiver and nodded. He reached at his belt and plucked three pokeballs from their perch and pressed the release button.

One by one, Meganium, Crobat, and Sneasel appeared in a flash.

Meganium made a bizarre squawk of displeasure and Crobat made a hissing sound before perching on the sauropod's back to avoid landing on the frosted floor. Sneasel, on the other hand, brightened visibly when he felt the wonderfully frigid air. Silver had a feeling that having an Ice-type out would be beneficial, since he could best portray a likely and strong opponent towards the other two.

"Good," Lyra confirmed with a nod before taking two pokeballs off of her own belt. "Let's go, Fia. You too, Pitfall. You both could use a bit more ice training."

Her large, brown bird and poisonous bipedal beast emerged into the low temperatures. Nidoking growled, but stomped a thick foot in an attempt to look tough. The Fearow settled onto the ground, wincing slightly at the smarting sensation of the cold against her unprotected feet, but overall, she took it much more gracefully –and quietly- than Silver's training candidates. Meganium was still grumbling and trying to unsettle the Crobat on his back, while Crobat would occasionally clip him with an extended wing as he tried to keep his balance.

"Would you two shut up and stand still?" Silver barked in an attempt to order them to attention.

Meganium fixed him with a golden glare, but the two finally settled down.

"Right. We're going to work on resistance for you two while we're here, since the both of you can't stand low temperatures," Silver stated, glaring at them in a silent dare to object. However, despite not looking pleased, neither Pokémon complained.

"May I?" Lyra asked politely. Silver just gave a curt nod as permission.

"Okay then," she took over, looking somewhat eager at the challenge. "So we have Sneasel, who will be our theoretical opponent when needed. And the rest of the time, we'll be doing different training tactics to test out your speed, strength, and endurance in cold weather conditions. When you guys manage to adjust to the cold enough that your tactics improve, we'll head further into the cave."

Crobat and Meganium gave a less-than-enthusiastic reply, but they, along with Sneasel, nodded in accordance with her instructions. Silver was mildly surprised that they didn't reject the idea entirely. Aside from Meganium, of course. That pansy would do anything Lyra asked him in the blink of an eye.

"Good!" Lyra said cheerfully. "Then I have an idea. Mega, why don't you practice your Body Slam on that thick slab of ice there until it breaks, okay?"

Meganium nodded, charging over to said slab of ice so quickly that Crobat lost his footing and had to quickly recover from a fall before hitting the icy floor.

"Hmm, and Crobat… How about using Air Cutter to slice up this ice stalagmite from the top down?"

"Cro…" The Bat Pokémon nodded and hovered over towards the thick icy spike that rose from the ground.

"Good, now for my Pokémon," Lyra said with a nod, pleased that Silver's Pokémon were familiar enough with her to allow her to give orders when Silver permitted it. "Fia, let's see. How about using Drill Peck to drive holes into another one of those stalagmites. And Pitfall, you can have Silver's Sneasel be your sparring partner. No using Earth Power, though please. I don't want to crack up _all_ the ice in the place. You okay with that, Sneasel?"

"Snea sel, Sneasnea," Sneasel grinned crookedly in agreement.

Pitfall snorted, shifting his bulky, armored body and itching for some proper training. His brute force could flatten Sneasel any day, but the dark weasel had an advantage in both speed and type.

The Pokémon were soon at it, and crashes, slams, and slashes filled the air, as well as the sharp clank of ice hitting ice or the shatter of ice hitting stone. Silver watched the group, slightly impressed with how well Lyra had thought things out. Every few minutes, she would switch them out with different techniques, and Sneasel would have a different sparring partner. And there was a few minutes rest after every other switch, with Silver giving criticism and Lyra giving compliments where both were due. Pitfall had come out beneath Sneasel in their brief spar, but it was a close thing. Fia managed to use her aerial agility to her advantage and performed excellent dodges, the ice type not managing to hit her once. Crobat used the same evading idea. But while Fia's feathers were insulating, he had nothing to keep him warm, and he was slowed by the cold, resulting in getting hit a couple of times. Meganium was by no means able to outmaneuver the little weasel, but he managed to get a few hits in.

All in all, when Lyra kindly told them to rest, they gladly did so, and Silver had already seen some improvement in the mere hour they'd been working.

Recalling the Pokémon to their pokeballs for a lengthy break, Lyra grinned.

"I'm very impressed with your Pokémon Silver!" she beamed as she began to carefully make her way further into the pass, carefully sliding her feet past an incredibly slippery patch of icy ground. "Once Crobat managed to warm up, his speed rose significantly, and I'm sure that Meganium's natural resistance to contact with ice has risen a lot."

Silver nodded in response, keeping close behind her as they descended a ladder. "Yes, they have gotten better. I'll admit, this was a pretty good idea. Considering you were the one who came up with it and all."

"Thanks, Silver! I'm glad you think we're making progress, then," she replied, her smile only growing bigger as she looked over her shoulder and smiled at him.

He feigned a half-smile as he felt his palms grow sweaty, despite the cold. He tried to inconspicuously rub his slick palms on his coat to rid them of moisture, and thankfully, Lyra didn't notice.

But that didn't rid him of the fact that he was frustrated with himself about it.

_Why all this all of a sudden? Ever since I met up with her, I haven't been able to go a whole hour without acting strange!_

"Watch out," Lyra's voice snapped him back to reality. "Another really slippery patch just ahead."

"Hn," he muttered, trying to regain control of his mind. "Then it's probably _you_ who will need to be careful."

Lyra only chuckled, finding humor in his statement, and continued on. She gingerly placed a foot onto the glossy surface, nodded to herself, and pushed off with her other foot, sliding several feet before slowing down. She glanced back at Silver and gestured to him to follow her.

_What's the worst thing that could happen?_

The thought was sarcastic, but Silver probably should have known better than to invoke the wrath of the dreaded, irony-loving Murphy's Law.

He copied her movements, skidding out onto the ice in a careful, yet nonchalant manner. Lyra continued on in front of him, her arms stuck out to either side to help keep her balance, carefully sliding each foot in front of the other. He kept close behind, and she often came to a rest beside an icy boulder to take a quick break from the expanse of ice before moving on.

"Alright. Almost there," she muttered to herself, and she pushed off of the last of the boulders to glide across the ice. Silver followed suit silently.

It seemed like they would make it all the way through without any incident. Things looked like they would go as smooth as the ice they were sliding on. It _appeared_ that they were in the clear.

But let's not forget the previously mentioned Murphy's Law, who was known to swoop onto those who unknowingly summoned it.

They were so close, too. Lyra was carefully skimming one foot in front of the other, when her foot hit a small bump in the ice.

Her balance was gone as her other foot went skidding out from under her. Silver noted with slight alarm the scene that was unfolding in front of him. He continued sliding towards her and automatically caught her, his arms under hers. Unfortunately, his collision with her shifted the direction of his momentum so abruptly that he could feel his balance failing him as well. His feet frantically scrambled around on the smooth surface, trying to regain traction, but it was a losing battle.

Finally, the treads of his shoes managed to get a slight grip on the ice, and his frantic wobbling slowed.

"Ehehe, whoops," Lyra chuckled weakly from her half-standing position.

"I told you, didn't I, smart one?" Silver questioned coolly, but then his brain finally registered the fact that he was practically _holding Lyra in his arms_ as she tried to prop herself back up onto her feet. That fact alone made him almost drop her as he felt like all the heat in his body traveled to his face and his heart thudded into overdrive.

"Ehn, hold still Silver," Lyra protested at his sudden movement, facing in the opposite direction and unaware of the slightly panicked look Silver was sporting.

One of her hands went to grip his shoulder as she struggled to pull herself up. He tried to make his face assume a neutral expression, but he knew he was failing. She twisted around in his grip to face him so she could steady herself more easily. Unfortunately for Silver, this was not helpful.

"Thanks… Are you alright, Silver?" Lyra asked, finally noticing his thunderstruck look. "You didn't get hurt, did you?"

Her face was much too close. He released her when he was sure neither of them would lose their balance again and took a step back to put some blessed distance between them.

"No…" He murmured shakily. "No, I'm… I'm fine."

_Moron. You're not fine. This is not fine. This is as far from fine as you can be right now! Idiot, you have to maintain control!_

He needed to get away from her. He needed some space to breathe. He needed some time to think.

Once he managed to assure Lyra that he was unharmed by the slip, they made it to safer ground.

"C'mon, let's go this way," Lyra motioned, already putting the incident behind her as she started down one passageway.

"You go ahead," Silver stammered, his heart rate still higher than average. "I'll catch up. I just… I need some time to talk to my Pokémon about training… _Alone._"

He turned and started quickly down a different passage, desperate for some time to gather himself, not hearing the reply that Lyra made.

He didn't stop his swift walk for another ten minutes. He was trying so very hard to figure out whatever it was that was tormenting him when he was around her.

"Augh, what's going on with me, dammit?" He growled in utter frustration.

He was about to vent to Meganium or Sneasel, but as his hand hovered towards his belt, he stopped. They were pretty tired from the training session earlier, and he didn't want to drag them back out until they were better rested. It was a mark of how much he really had changed. Earlier in his training career, he wouldn't have considered how tired his Pokémon were.

Hell, he wouldn't have even considered _talking_ to them about his problems. Until about halfway through his travels through Johto, he hadn't assumed that they had the mental capacity to understand more than battle instructions.

But that wasn't the problem right now. He continued walking, not sure of where he was going or what he was looking for. He came to a stop a few minutes later, feeling slight regret in walking off without giving much explanation to Lyra.

This made it the second time he had gone off without her.

And the last time he had, he had ended up meeting…

"Sol!"

He stiffened, fear suddenly pounding through his veins. No.

_No… I was just thinking about the creature is all. There's no way that it could actually…_

Slowly, hands shaking, he turned around and saw the unwelcome sight of the large, white Absol standing in the passage he had just walked through.

"Ab absol!"

Cold, molten dread swept through every inch of him when his mercury eyes met with the intelligent maroon eyes of the Disaster Pokémon. There was urgency present in those sharp eyes that hadn't been there in his last visit.

And that's what scared Silver more than anything.

"Oh… Oh, God… Lyra!"

**(~)  
Okay, so after a moment of lightheartedness, we're getting to the meat of the story. Things are going to get a little more dramatic from here on out. So get ready for it. Next chapter is going to be kind of inspired by a certain song by The Fray. Guess the song, you get special mention in the next chapter. ;D**

**Recommendations:  
"If I Lost On Purpose, Would You Stop Following Me?" by MarlinMarlen  
"Follow Me" by SakuraMota  
"Her Strength" by lumachu  
"Silver's Story" by crackingvoices  
"Our Strands of Fate Are Intertwined" by NicoleGoldstein13  
"Taking Responsibility" by Sparks101 (This was originally "Taking Responsibility")  
"Tell Me" by BlackLightconvicted**

**Well, that's it for today. Next chapter won't take as long, I swear. Love ya, guys!  
As always, read, enjoy, and review! ;D  
~Meta-Akira  
**


	16. Outrage

**Hiya! Meta-Akira here!**

**Readers: What's all this? An update made in less than a week? This is madness!  
Me: Madness? This... is... Inspiration! ...Or more like procrastination, since I wrote this instead of focusing on my Astronomy work that I'm already woefully behind in... ^^;  
**

**No, but seriously. I didn't want to leave you guys hanging with that cliffhanger, especially since last chapter took so long to post. And _this_ was the chapter I've been so excited about writing since chapter ten! Usually, I don't put so much thought into a chapter beforehand, but like I said before, this is where the meat of the story really begins.**

**Special thanks to my reviewers: phooykazooi, Chi Yagami, TheGreatProphet283, NicoleGoldstein13, Moonlight's Shadow Warrior, Anonislove, splitheart1120, AikoAkahana, Emeraldshard, Cornelia Fox, and MarlinMarlen. You guys are epic! 8D**

**Also, Anonislove posted the song from The Fray in one of her review lists. 'Twas "Say When".**

**A warning: this is where the story begins to own up to it's T rating. Violence...**

**I do not own the characters of HG and SS.**

**As always, read, enjoy, and review.  
(~)**

* * *

"_I come across you lost and broken,  
You're coming to, but you're slow in waking.  
You start to shake,  
You still haven't spoken, what happened?_

_They're coming back, and you just don't know when.  
You want to cry, but there's nothing coming.  
They're gonna push until you give in or say when.  
_

_Now we're here, and it turns to chaos,  
Hurricane coming all around us.  
Double crack throws you back  
From the window, you stay low._

_It all began with a man and country,  
Every plan turns another century  
Around again, another nation fallen._

_Maybe God can be on both sides  
Of the gun, never understood why  
Some of us never get it so good, so good._

_Some of this was here before us,  
All of this will go after us,  
It never stops until we give in, give in_

_Or say when, and my own two hands  
Will comfort you tonight, tonight  
Say when and my own two arms  
Will carry you tonight, tonight  
Say when, and my own two hands  
Will comfort you tonight, tonight."_

"Say When" by The Fray

* * *

The question of the safety of running on icy surfaces totally disregarded, Silver's feet thumped out a breakneck pace that matched his heart rate, thud for thud.

Once his mind had made the connection, he had been off and running, following after the ghostly white creature that had mercifully come to warn him of the perils that lay ahead.

Absol kept slightly ahead of Silver, easily able to keep the pace, though his enormous blue-taloned paws made no sound as they fell on the frosted floor. Though the Disaster Pokémon was fully focused on getting this human back to the female in time, his intelligent maroon eyes would occasionally dart back towards the redheaded trainer, noting the wild panic in his mercury eyes before quickly snapping back to the path ahead. He was an intelligent Absol. But he rarely had ventured into the realm of humans. For a long time, he had spent his years lurking about Dark Cave. His Future Sight almost never revealed a disaster that would befall humans. Usually, if his random Future Sight decided to grace him, it would be a fleeting glimpse of a nearby rockslide that was fairly common and too remote to pose a threat to anyone.

This was the first time the disaster that had been revealed to him wasn't naturally caused.

His catlike face looked grim. His most recent flurry of Future Sights had just come to him, and all of them seemed to revolve around this one human girl. Apparently, if her death occurred, it would be the catalyst to many, many terrible events. Furthermore, he had the intuition that this red-haired human could put a stop to it.

He glanced back at Silver once more and saw through the overwhelming fear and concern emanating from those metallic eyes to reveal a determination, solid as the stone that all this ice grew upon. Sheer determination to keep the girl from harm drove him on faster than simple fear could do. There seemed to be a bond between them that delved deeper than mere friendship. That was a good thing. With this particular human, the girl had a much stronger chance of surviving.

But for now, the Absol reminded himself, the object was to get to her to be able to help her.

As for Silver, his mind was racing. Many images were flashing through his mind, but all of them eventually connected back to _her._

_Why did I leave her? If she… If she… well… it'll be all my fault. My fault…_

Recollections of that dream he'd had in Azalea blinked through his mind. Piles of black flowers. Empty metal chairs. Closed coffin with her cheerful picture sitting on top. And her Feraligatr and his own Meganium, advancing on him with glowing red eyes, spewing hate filled, continuous phrases of 'your fault, your fault' at him.

_No. NO! I won't let that happen. I… I can't… I-I just… can't…_

Despite how feebly miserable and lost the thought sounded in his head, his determination swelled as he ignored the stitch in his side and urged himself to move even faster.

If he ever slipped, he'd quickly pick himself back up again as the Absol paused in his mad dash to wait for him. Once, his face met the icy ground in a rather unpleasant manner, and he briefly acknowledged that he had cut his cheek on a shard of ice. But the thought was fleeting, and he was up and sprinting again.

He rocketed past where he had split up from Lyra only perhaps a half hour ago, and continued on in the direction that Lyra had indicated before. Something faintly echoed in his ears, but under the crashing of his footfalls and his heavy breathing, he couldn't make out what it was.

After several more minutes, Absol came to a halt, and he had to skid a few feet to follow suit. It seemed that Absol's navy talons and furred paws were much better at gripping the ice than his shoes were.

Before them was a hole going down into the icy floor. A ladder provided a way to somewhat safely descend into the vertical tunnel. Now that Silver had stopped running, he could hear something coming from the gaping hole. Frenzied snarls were rising, and his fists clenched when he recognized them to be Fang's.

Absol glanced at him again before approaching the hole and unhesitatingly jumped, disappearing into the darkness below. Silver gripped the sides of the ladder, pulse pounding in his ears, and slid himself down quickly but carefully after the Disaster Pokémon, not bothering to use the rungs.

He braced himself as he neared the floor, tightening his grip on the ladder sides to slow his descent. Once he felt his feet touch the ground, he let go and spun around, almost expecting an attack. The passageway was empty, but it twisted out of view, and the snarls were louder. A sudden roar punctuated the snarls, and a scream pierced the sound like a knife. A quick shudder of horror passed through him, but he steeled himself and took off running again, towards the vicious snarls of an angry Feraligatr and –a hopefully unharmed- Lyra. Absol ran beside him, but the Pokémon wasn't registering in Silver's mind anymore.

Just_ Lyra, Lyra, Lyra, Lyra…_

It continued as a chanted mantra in his head, a plea for her safety, a hope for her wellbeing.

And a curse towards any who might want her to be harmed.

Fear again surged through him as he heard a second scream. It was definitely Lyra's, and he again redoubled his efforts to move faster as adrenaline flooded his system.

"Sol!" The white creature said sharply, alerting Silver that he was drawing close to the place he was dreading to see.

He sprinted around one last corner, and came to an abrupt halt. He shivered, frozen to the spot by the sight. Silver went unnoticed as the scene played out in front of him.

The first thing that demanded attention was Fang. His snarls and roars were now at a painful volume, especially since they rebounded of the icy cave walls until it echoed and you had no idea when one bellow ended and the next began. They were part of an enraged crescendo. Silver doubted if he had ever heard the massive blue reptile sound so ferocious and desperate, even in his vivid nightmares.

But the fact that was astounding was that the enormous creature was practically staying in one spot. It looked like he was struggling fiercely, lashing out and flailing for all his worth. He swung his tail and roared in frustration as he appeared to be snapping and biting at unseen bonds. His feet seemed to be stuck in place and his arms were held steadfast tight against his sides. Silver was confused as to why the Feraligatr was thrashing around but unable to move from his spot when he saw a faint blue glow engulfing the creature. He noticed four Alakazam standing in a semicircle behind Fang, and they appeared to be pooling their psychic powers in order to hold the Feraligatr firmly in place.

For a brief moment, he felt impressed that it took four fully evolved Psychic-type Pokémon to restrain the beast, but it was quickly swept away by the anger of why they were holding him in place. He faintly saw the distant figures of four people standing off to one side, but he couldn't see them properly since they were huddled in shadows. He frantically looked around and noticed several Houndoom surrounding a huddled figure. With a jolt, he realized it was Lyra.

_No, no NO!_

"Consider it, _Champion_." Came an unfamiliar voice. "Keep our words in mind."

The voice was cold, but filled with mirthless amusement and a cruel condescension. It sent a shiver down Silver's spine, but fury filled him like boiling water. This voice was the source of danger. This voice held the answers that he would take, preferably _by force_.

It took him a moment to realize that these figures hadn't noticed his presence yet.

"But as a reminder to you, I'm afraid we must leave you with a lasting impression," the amusement had risen in the person's voice, and with it rose Silver's anger and fear.

The snap of fingers echoed sharply in the cavern, surprisingly heard over the struggles of Fang.

Silver's feelings hit a panicked pitch as one of the four Houndoom approached the severely trembling girl, embers flying around its bared teeth.

Silver, rooted to the spot, saw Lyra's brown eyes widen in sheer, utter fear. She tried to scoot away, but was blocked by another Houndoom.

Her terrified shrieks started to fill the air, and Fang's struggles became more pronounced. Still, the Alakazam held strong, keeping the Feraligatr from retaliating. And her cries reached a peak point as the burning fangs flew at her, plunging past the fabric of her light jacket and into her arm.

Her terrified shrill scream finally brought Silver crashing back down to earth, and his eyes sparked in a protective rage.

How dare they.

_How DARE they?_

Swiftly, he pulled out Meganium's pokeball. He threw it while simultaneously yelling, "MEGANIUM, USE FRENZY PLANT ON THOSE DAMN HOUNDOOM!"

His voice echoed dizzyingly, as his sauropod burst from his ball in a flash of white, already bugling and petals aglow. His golden eyes saw the Houndoom, his gaze narrowed viciously, and his bugling increased in volume.

In only two seconds time, rumbling was heard and the thick, spiny vines had managed to punch their way through a bed of stone and ice, several slamming into each of the hellhounds, except for one, shoving them away from Lyra and surrounding them in a tight cage of thorny, ruthless, wooden brambles. The surprised and pained yelps of the creatures resounded from it. The Houndoom that hadn't been trapped turned towards Silver and started towards him, but a blur of white fur flew at the creature. Absol became locked in a physical grapple with the Houndoom, each struggling to pin the other, exchanging bites and slashes. The shadowed figures let out sounds of surprise as Silver and Meganium- still glowing as he maintained control over the vines –rushed over to Lyra's side.

Adrenaline was still pumping through Silver's system as he took in the pitiful form of his rival and friend. She was curled up into the smallest ball that she could manage, clutching her injured arm close to her, eyes squeezed tightly closed. He dropped to his knees next to her, laying a hand gently on her shoulder. She didn't respond, aside from a whimper.

It hurt to see her down like this. It hurt like hell.

He noted quickly that her pokeballs were gone. Had the scum balls gone and taken them from her? Probably. It would be predictable.

The people who had been standing out of direct sight had regained their composure. Who Silver assumed to be the leader chuckled darkly. A man.

"So… Here's the valiant savior. Well, he was bound to find out sooner or later, wasn't he? Lyra ran to you in search of protection, hm, _Silver_?"

Silver sent a look filled with such heated anger that it was surprising it didn't melt the ice surrounding him.

The mysterious figure only chuckled again.

"How amusing. So terrified, she seeks out her significantly _weaker_ rival," the voice of this person was clearly trying to provoke him.

Silver ground his teeth, resisting with all his might not to take the bait. Instead, he kept silent, keeping his attention between Lyra and the Alakazam restraining Fang. His hand drifted to his belt to grab reinforcements.

"I wouldn't do that, Silver," the amused man's voice said with a laugh barely suppressed. If you make a move to release another Pokémon, I'll have to order the Alakazam to pool their powers into giving Fang's neck a simple, but firm, _twist_."

The man chuckled again as he saw Silver's hand sharply recoil away from his belt. He couldn't afford taking the risk that these people wouldn't follow through with this threat. If they were RP, and of that he had no doubt, then they were perfectly willing to kill Lyra, if after some traumatic toying like a Persian with a Rattata. And if that were so, they would probably have no qualms over killing Lyra's best partner.

"Who are you and what the _hell_ do you want with Lyra?" he spat with the most venom he could muster. He acknowledged with some panic that blood was slowly seeping onto the ice from the collapsed girl.

"You know, you are in a bit of a bind," the man taunted, and it only infuriated Silver further that he couldn't see these people clearly. "Curious, I didn't know you had an Absol. Not much usually escapes our notice. But you see, you only have two Pokémon available to you, and both are rather occupied. And it seems that Meganium can only last so long with his Frenzy Plant, especially with our Houndoom doing a number on his vines…"

Meganium was shuddering with the effort of trying to keep up the wall of thick vines containing the Pokémon, and Silver could see smoke starting to flow upwards as he could imagine the canines spewing out fire attacks in an effort to escape.

"And once they are free, your Meganium will be powerless to stop them."

Silver winced as he realized the truth of his words. The energy spent by Meganium would mean he'd be exhausted and unable to move for a time after the attack faded. Already, he could see the vines wavering weakly.

_Damn, don't have a lot of time left. Dammit, dammit, dammit!_

He grimaced and was lost on what to do. He started when he felt Lyra shift slightly under his hand. His eyes flew to her, and he noticed her eyes were open, but they were hauntingly clouded and glassy.

Her mouth moved weakly, but he couldn't hear what she said.

"What?"

"…_Outrage_," she whispered, but was barely audible. Silver could barely hear it, and it made no sense to him.

It was practically impossible that anyone could hear the word over the din of the howling Houndoom and the struggles occurring. However, her Feraligatr somehow heard the word as clear as crystal, for he stiffened immediately.

Silver's eyes were drawn away from Lyra, whose eyes had closed tightly again, towards the enormous blue reptile. Fang's yellow eyes flew open wide, and his pupils contracted into slits of complete, uncontrollable _fury_. A red aura seemed to shimmer around him, overwhelming the blue of the Psychic attacks being used to restrain him.

The Alakazam flinched simultaneously as they doubled over, trying to keep Fang under control. But the red glow increased, and Fang let loose a roar that put all his earlier ones to shame.

His arms snapped outward with extreme force, as if he were snapping invisible ropes that had held them to his sides.

As his arms flew outward, the Alakazam were lifted off their feet by the ricocheting recoil of their shattered Psychic attack.

Without giving any of them a chance to recover in the slightest, red aura still flowing fiercely around him, he savagely closed the distance between himself and one Alakazam in one bound, smashing the Pokémon to the ground. Not restricting the focus of his boundless anger to one opponent, he left the dazed Alakazam and turned to the other three, jumping at each in quick succession to prevent them from getting back up. He sank his enormous teeth into one's leg with a powerful Crunch.

Silver stared at the onslaught being caused singlehandedly by the infuriated Feraligatr. The Alakazam were not given the slightest chance of retaliation.

Meganium fell to the ground with a gasp. He had held out as long as he could. The smoldering vines had shrunk and withered away back into the ground as the Grass-type was no longer able to sustain them. Absol was still ensnared in his fight with the other canine. The remaining Houndoom howled in victory and Silver quickly moved in front of Lyra protectively. Even if he had no chance against three vengeful Houndoom, something beyond his understanding compelled him to stand between them and his fallen friend. And he refused, point blank, to remove himself from that position.

"No way am I going to be intimidated by you damn dogs!" he snarled at them in return.

Despite his words, he tensed up in preparation for Flamethrowers or snapping teeth, but Fang briefly abandoned the Alakazam to turn towards the Pokémon advancing towards Silver and Lyra, and spewed forth a massive Hydro Cannon, hitting all of the Fire-types in a massive sweep. Without missing a beat, or even pausing to rest from the attack, he spun around once more and again continued his furious brawl against the Alakazam. The Houndoom were left senseless on the floor, knocked out easily by the huge surge of water.

_Wh-What is it that has given him such a burst of power? He didn't even stop to pant from the effort that should have come with using such a powerful Hydro Cannon!_

And so it was. Fang was mindlessly dealing blow after blow, sometimes not even using his movepool and just slamming the Pokémon with his tail or fist. The four figures were no longer laughing, and were shouted incoherently at their Pokémon.

"Sol!"

Silver glanced over at Absol, who had cried out in triumph in defeating his opponent. The Houndoom was now lying unconscious with the rest of his brethren.

"The tables have been turned on us, it seems," the man said in a monotone voice. But a sinister grin was evident in his next words. "However, we will be back. I assure you. We just need to get a more _powerful_ source."

"What are you talking about?" Silver spat angrily, still standing between them and Lyra.

"Oh, I'm sure you and Lyra will be able to figure it out soon enough. And if not, well… we'd like it to remain a surprise," the man sneered. "Fall back, T Variant!"

As one, the group recalled their fainted Houndoom. One Alakazam managed a weak Reflect that made Fang falter so the group of battered Alakazam could collect themselves enough to Teleport to their masters.

Silver realized what was about to happen and tried to charge towards them in an attempt to stop them. But before he had made it four strides, they were gone- teleported away from the icy cave.

He came to a halt and lashed out a kick at an ice-covered stone, shattering the coating with a raw curse of "DAMN THEM!"

He panted hard for a few seconds, his fists tightening and loosening, tightening and loosening, tightening and loosening in quick succession.

Fang was roaring his anger on the escape of those who caused pain to his beloved trainer. The red pulsing glow was still surrounding him. He turned on the spot, panting heavily, looking for his quarry, and he spotted Silver.

He felt pangs of panic as Fang's eyes narrowed again as he leapt forwards. Fang didn't seem to be thinking clearly, and Silver was reminded again of the dream where Lyra's Feraligatr attacked him. His breath was knocked clean out of him as Fang was on top of him in a second. The creature's slit-like reptilian eyes looked unfocused but still bursting with rage. Silver's blood ran cold as he realized that whatever Fang had been doing must have enraged him to the point of confusing him, and he was lethal in this condition.

However, before either Fang or Silver could do anything- though, it seemed quite impossible for Silver to do anything from his position- Meganium rammed full force into Fang's side, shoving him off of his master. Fang snarled, sizing Meganium up and not appearing to recognize him.

But Meganium spouted off at Fang, seeming to be telling him off. The sauropod continued his verbal tirade at the bipedal alligator for several minutes, and Silver noticed that the red glow around Fang faded, and the pupils of his eyes relaxed from their contracted state. The Feraligatr seemed to slump suddenly onto all fours, limbs trembling from exhaustion. Head low, his mouth opened and his tongue limply hung from his jaws as he panted. Silver staggered to his feet and was afraid that Fang would pass out from fatigue. But instead, Fang lurched forward on unsteady legs past Silver and made his way towards the prone form of Lyra. He began to make some of the most sorrowful groans Silver ever heard the beast make.

Almost automatically, he stumbled forward, Meganium close behind him. For the second time, he knelt next to her on the frozen ground, ignoring the cold that seeped through his legs as he did so. He gently tugged her limp upper body off the ground and propped her up against Fang's side carefully. Her eyes were still tightly closed, and it was clear from her pale face that she was unconscious.

Something in him hurt with a sharp, saddening pain as he saw her arms. Both of the arms of her jacket were torn up and bloodied, and the right one was badly seared from the Fire Fang. Blood seeped through any of the fabric that wasn't saturated with it already, and it dripped off of the cuffs and onto the ice- the dark red a striking contrast to the opaque white.

He felt something warm and wet on his cheek. Briefly, he assumed that it was his own blood from the cut he had gotten on his cheek earlier. But as he felt his face, he found that the moisture had been a tear.

_No._ He told himself firmly, forcing back the wetness that was pricking at the corners of his eyes. _I have to control myself. I have to focus on Lyra. No time for this now. I can't go falling apart on her now… Later, later... Control myself. Help Lyra. Help… her… Keep her… alive…_

Letting out a shaky breath and doing his best to pull himself together, he licked his lips and tried to think of what he could do.

"Absol ab…"

He glanced behind him and saw Absol approaching solemnly, and rolling what must be Lyra's pokeballs towards him. He took them and placed them in his bag for the moment.

_I have to bandage those bite marks, but her sleeves are in the way._

"Absol, ," he called to him sharply, but quietly. He gently lifted one of her red-saturated cuffs. "I need you to make a small cut in these cuffs so I can take off the sleeves as gently as possible."

Absol nodded quickly and slipped his head-scythe under the lip of the cuff. With a quick tug, the navy scythe snagged on the material and made a tear. He did the same with the other side.

Silver shivered, but ignored the cold of the cave. Lyra was his main- his only –priority right now.

He gently grasped both sides of the tear on one sleeve and pulled them away from each other, peeling the soaked and tattered material from her arm. With a rip, the sleeve was torn right up to the left shoulder. He followed suit with the right, and he felt his breath leave him.

Lyra's arms were mottled with bruises around the puncture marks- a testament to how hard much pressure each of the Houndooms' mouths had put on her. Each puncture wound was deep, and blood quickly streamed from each gash. But the worst was the mark on her upper right arm.

Where the Houndoom had attacked her with a vicious Fire Fang.

A patch of skin that went from the outside of her arm, around one way to the inside of her arm was branded by the attack. The wound was only half-cauterized, blood seeping slowly from the punctures. The skin around the immediate area was blackened and flaky, while the skin a little further out was distorted, swollen, and red. The jacket had offered little protection against the burning heat.

His attention had been horrifically kept locked onto the frightening wounds she had acquired in only the past few minutes. He only now began to notice how Lyra was seizing up, shivering violently, eyes moving in frantically under her eyelids.

His breath catching in his chest, Silver rummaged through his bag and Lyra's bag- also retrieved by Absol –in a panicked search for something to wrap her arms with. He found gauze in her bag, but gave up on it- there wasn't nearly enough to cover her injuries. At last, he settled with his night shirt that he had extracted from his bag. It would have to do.

With some more help from Absol, he tore the extra shirt into two long strips. He wasn't extremely sure of what he was doing, but he did his best to wrap the strips around Lyra's arms. However, he was hesitant to make them too tight. It was as if he was afraid that she would shatter like glass.

Finally, her eyes burst open again, but just like before, they were glassy and clouded with pain. Her eyes continued to dart around, and her shallow breathing sped up. Silver wasn't even sure if she could see him in her frenzied state.

She whimpered softly as violent tremors wracked her- whether those tremors were out of pain or fear, it couldn't be distinguished.

"Lyra!" Silver called out, terrified of the chance that she could hurt herself further. His hand shot to her shoulder to grab it firmly, and she gasped so suddenly, he almost retracted his hand.

Her eyes locked onto his, and it seemed like she had been awakened from a sleepless dream, snapped out of her trance for the time being. She whimpered again, trembling like a leaf. Her eyes seemed to be brimming with tears that wouldn't fall. She looked lost and terrified, and he felt that sharp pain inside of him again.

"Lyra, it's me," he whispered in a hoarse, shaky voice that he had never heard himself use before. "It's alright, I-I'm here. They're gone. They're gone."

Lyra tried to sit up, despite Fangs protestations, but she immediately swayed from the dizziness brought on by blood loss. She slumped forward, and Silver carefully caught her. He brought his arms around her, one beneath one of her heavily bandaged arms and across her back, the other cradling her head that he gently pressed against his shoulder.

"I'm sorry. I'm here. They're gone, Lyra. They're gone."

He was trying to soothe her nerves as well as his own. Even though he knew she knew that they weren't done with them forever. Even though they both knew they would return eventually.

But as he felt her trembling slow as she started to fade out of consciousness again, for the first time in many of the years Silver could remember, he prayed. He prayed with all his being that things would somehow turn out all right.

**(~)  
See? A bit darker than my usual results. I wanted to put down more, but I felt this chapter was already a bit lengthy, and so things will be further explained in the next chapter. Not entirely sure how soon it can be out, things are busy here with a sudden flood of schoolwork that I *ahem* haven't done yet. Ahehe...**

**New poll on my profile. Redone and reset. Please vote if you can!**

**My recommendations are the same as last chapter. I'm just too lazy to type 'em out again. XD**

**Review?**

**Until next time. See ya! ~Meta-Akira  
**


	17. Safe

**Hi guys! Meta-Akira here.  
Sorry, sorry _sorry_ for the long wait. So much sutff has been happening, and I let time get away from me.**

**First off, I'm officially done with my first year of college! Whew! I'm on the Dean's List, too. 8D  
Second, things at home have been extremely hectic these past three weeks. Easter, then moving back, then Mother's Day.  
And who knows how many job applications I've filled out these past few weeks. Yep., looking for a job this summer. BECAUSE I'M BROKE AND I NEED MONEY. Haven't heard back yet, but I'm hopeful!  
Third: Thank you for all the encouragement I've received. I'm so happy that you guys were so enthusiastic about me continuing this story. Don't worry, I will never leave this site anytime soon. And if I EVER do (believe me, that's nothing to worry about), I would never leave before this story was finished.**

**A specific shout out to Cornelia Fox, who did wonderful fan art for this story on DA.  
http:/ nyanko-tan. deviantart. com/art/I-missed-you-too-203258913?q=gallery%3Anyanko-tan&qo=1**

**Many thanks to my reviewers: Chi Yagami, AikoAkahana, Anonislove, Moonlight's Shadow Warrior, phooykazooi, KittyRin, doggiefan, TheGreatProphet283, splitheart1120, Sparks101, GlowingGreenEyes, I Lov3 Wizardmon, MarlinMarlen, Spaztic32, Sapphiet, xStartaRIOTx, AngelicSnow, Mijumaruwott, Foxgrl18, Not So Tempramental Artist, Kaiyojin Kobayashi, and PokemonTrainerPichu.  
Twenty-two reviews since my last update. O.O  
I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH! 8D  
AND HOLY CRUD, WE'RE NEARING 100 REVIEWS.**

**Well, without further ado, here is the next (and long overdue) chapter. As always, read, enjoy, and review!  
I don't own the characters of HG and SS.**

**(~)  
**

Silver hated hospitals.

They were too clean. They had a foul sterile stench about them and they were so incredibly bland. It didn't matter if people fruitlessly tried to lighten the place up with picture, flowers, or balloons. It just didn't. No matter what, it still felt like suffering was condensed on the walls.

He always had a vehement hatred for the places for as long as he could remember. Well, it probably had to do with the fact that his mother was in hospitals most of the time in the months leading up to her death. And the hatred had stuck with him this whole time. He had avoided them like the plague. Even in Pokémon Centers, he would never go in the back to see any of his Pokémon if they had suffered a terrible defeat. He couldn't take the sight of them sitting limply on the beds, tubes stuffed into their mouths and needles attached to their limbs.

He occasionally felt guilty on his journey, even before Lyra had convinced him of a Pokémon's true worth, that he would leave the battered creatures alone in this cold, sterile environment with no one but the nurses and their Chansey to visit them. It reminded him of what his_ father_ failed to do when she had been in there, suffering from the disease.

He had usually been escorted to the hospital to see his mother by whoever was available of the mansion's staff. And he would get so terrified by the sight of his gaunt mother, connected to machines that slowly beeped out her life, second by second. He had a faint memory of going up to the bedside, whimpering and reaching to tug away the tubes that must have been causing her this pain.

But no, no. He would get pulled away and gently scolded by his sitter of the day, being told that those tubes were _good_ for her, and that they were important in keeping her free of pain. But he couldn't understand. He was only five years old and his mother was slipping away, how could he understand?

And then his mother's eyes, once a lively silver that his took after, would open and cloud over when she didn't see her husband. But seeing him always there lit a small gleam in them once more, and she told him to be strong for her.

After all these years, his unease for the place still lingered in him, even if it was technically a place of healing. It was why every time one of his Pokémon was actually hurt and needed to be taken in for a night or two, he couldn't bear to look in and see them. Hospitals to him were a place of loss. And he hated to lose. So being the coward he was, he'd run away and return for them later.

Now he was torn. He wanted to run, but something rooted him in place. So here he was, again in the same room with someone who was suffering. Someone he so badly didn't want to lose.

He sighed quietly, staring around the room. He was trying to find something to distract himself. Anything but look at _her._

Because it hurt when he did.

He was tired. Exhausted, really. He ran a hand through his disheveled red hair and glanced at the clock. It was four in the afternoon. Already, more than twenty-four hours had passed. But he couldn't force himself to get a single minute of sleep. It had been a terrible experience, almost as bad as finding her had been. He replayed the events that had happened soon after the ambush on Lyra.

After Lyra had blacked out in the Ice Path, Silver knew he needed to act quickly. She had lost a lot of blood, and even with his makeshift bandages on her bloody and burned arms, it probably wouldn't stop the flow completely. And being in Ice Path was terrible for her. Being in such a weakened state, she could easily get hypothermia or frostbite. She already felt below the normal temperature.

He had shifted her in his arms, trying not to hurt her further. He needed to get out and to a Pokémon Center. _Now._ But… But how? Fang and Meganium looked at him worriedly, and he knew they would both listen to his orders on a moment's notice to help out.

Absol, though looking grim, appeared much calmer. He walked straight up to Silver and swiped at his side with one enormous paw. Silver flinched, but realized that the creature hadn't done so to strike at him when he heard one of his pokeballs clatter to the icy ground, and a flash of white light emerged from the capsule.

He shuddered when it took the familiar, awful shape. If he hadn't known it was his own Alakazam, he probably would have panicked. Fang shared this sentiment, for he snarled viciously, intimidating Silver's Alakazam quite badly. The Psi Pokémon actually trembled in alarm, but Absol interceded, sending growls and uttered barks to each Pokémon. Fang settled down, and Alakazam looked over at Lyra in concern.

Absol had looked at Silver with a face that seemed to say, _"well, now you know what you need to do?"_

He had blinked in response. Absol couldn't be talking about Recover. Recover only worked on the Pokémon who used it. It was too much to hope for. But as he looked at Absol, it clicked.

However… Alakazam hadn't used that move since Silver had first caught him as an Abra. But it was definitely worth a shot.

"Alakazam," he said, appalled by how shaky his voice sounded. "I need you to use Teleport. Please, I need you to try to remember how to use Teleport."

Alakazam was surprised by the command. He uneasily shifted, trying to recall how to perform the technique he had long ago abandoned.

"You… You _can _do it… right?"

Alakazam looked back at his trainer's face and noticed how pale it was and how much fear was in his gaze. That had been something he had never seen in his master- fear. Silver had already been a somewhat kinder individual by the time he had been captured, but fear had still been something of an unspeakable weakness to him. To see fear in his master's gaze made Alakazam realize how much Silver needed him to pull through at this point. Alakazam felt determination course through him. He nodded, raising both of his spoons.

"You're sure?"

The intelligent Psi Pokémon couldn't fail to hear the desperate hope in his voice. He nodded again firmly, closing his eyes in concentration. After a minute had passed, Silver, Lyra, and the four Pokémon were enveloped in a soft blue glow. Alakazam had opened one eye briefly in a silent inquiry as to where they needed to go.

"Anywhere." Silver said sharply, still holding onto Lyra's slumped form. "Any Pokémon Center as long as it's away from this damn place."

Alakazam's eye had slid closed once more and Silver felt a bizarre, weightless, tingling feeling. He realized he had never experienced teleportation before, and he felt slightly nauseous because of it.

Once they had landed, or whatever the term could possibly be, Silver staggered, unused to the feeling of the aftereffects. But he disregarded them and didn't even take a moment to figure out his surroundings. He just bolted through the door to the Pokémon Center before him, Fang, Meganium, Absol, and Alakazam hot on his heels.

What a sight he must have been. Busting through the door and immediately drawing the eye of Nurse Joy, who had promptly clapped her hands over her mouth, eyes wide in shock.

The rest happened in a blur. Silver seemed to be in a daze. The nurse had called up several Chansey to grab a stretcher, though his hearing had been rather selective and his ears were ringing loudly. He was relieved of the weight of the pallid girl as she was placed onto a stretcher and quickly wheeled into the ward for people. He numbly returned Meganium and Fang and handed over the Pokémon that she and he had used to train earlier that horrific day.

He vaguely remembered insisting that he was fine as another nurse had started fussing over his (not so) minor injuries, and constantly asking over whether Lyra was okay.

Eventually, after he had given in had let the nurse treat the bleeding cuts on his face and arms, as well as his ankle- which he had never even recalled twisting in the first place- and giving her a bit of an explanation as to what happened, she had lead him to Lyra's room, though the nurse told him that she probably wouldn't be waking up for quite a while.

And so he had stayed there, keeping a constant, attentive vigil. Every sound he had heard made him snap to attention, looking warily around for a possible culprit. He had sent his Gengar out once more to patrol the perimeter of the Center, unseen, and alert him of anyone suspicious entering the building. Thankfully, Gengar hadn't reported a sighting yet. Absol came and went like a phantom, coming in briefly to check on Silver and the unresponsive girl before leaving again to God-knows-where.

"Here you are," Nurse Joy had come in after about five hours of him sitting in Lyra's room. She handed him the pokeballs. "The Pokémon are all healed, but you must let that Feraligatr rest. He's completely exhausted."

Silver had merely nodded. And so the rest of the twenty-four hours went, with him only leaving briefly to use the restroom and refusing to drag himself to the cafeteria to grab a meal for himself.

The next morning, Nurse Joy knocked politely on the door. She sighed slightly when she heard Silver's voice instead of Lyra's alertly state a quick "Come in."

"Good morning," she said as cheerfully as she could, one of her Chansey following behind her with a tray of tubes and a thick roll of gauze. "Silver, was it?"

Silver nodded curtly, his tired shoulders relaxing since there was no threat.

"Were you here all night?"

Again, Silver nodded sharply.

"I hope you were able to at least get some sleep on the couch…"

Silver only responded by shaking his head.

Nurse Joy frowned faintly. But she soon turned her attention onto the girl and began to hover around the bedside, Chansey right beside her.

"Well, how was she through the night? Did she have any traumatic episodes?"

"No," Silver finally responded with a curt syllable. But Joy felt there was something hidden under that no.

"Nightmares?"

Silver hesitantly nodded, his fists clenching.

"What happened?"

"She turned her head a lot, and she was sweating," he muttered, looking down at his feet.

"Hm… It might be aftereffects of so much blood loss. Don't worry too much about it. The amount of blood she lost isn't as high as you probably think it was. You wrapped her arms and brought her here immediately, and that was the best thing you could have done."

_No. The best thing I could have done was to stop this from happening in the first place._

"I'll have to change the bandages on her arms and check up on that burn of hers. It turned out to be a second-degree burn. However, the burn itself isn't extremely deep. The puncture wounds are deeper, and the burn will eventually heal properly with the right medication and care. If we're lucky, scarring will be very minimal."

"But it was a Houndoom that bit her… Won't that…?"

Silver had taken a look of his book of Kanto and Johto native Pokémon. And he didn't like the word he'd read. Burns that would cause pain forever floated through his head.

Nurse Joy looked at him in understanding.

"Houndoom burns will cause residual pain even long after the wound closes up, _if_ the right steps aren't taken during the healing process," she said, emphasizing the word 'if'. "But we're well prepared here. We have a specialized medicine that contains very rare berries called Kuo berries. They're hard to find and difficult to grow here in Johto, but they are more potent than Rawst berries, though there are some of those in it, too. After it is applied, we can continue the healing process with a Pokémon that knows Aromatherapy."

She explained all of this while carefully unraveling the stained gauze strips that had been wrapped around Lyra's arms yesterday. Silver winced when he saw the bite wounds, but was relieved to find that the bleeding had been greatly reduced by the tight bandages. Nurse Joy first grabbed a bottle of antiseptics with a small sprayer attached. She did a once-over on each of Lyra's arms with it, and gently wiped away the dried blood. She then took the bright greenish-blue tube and squirted the paste onto a cotton swab and applied a liberal coating to the burn. It gave off a fresh, cooling sort of smell. She continued onto each of her puncture wounds with a different tube of material before grabbing the thick roll of gauze and tightly wrapping Lyra's arms in new bandages.

She straightened with a satisfied sigh and replaced the materials onto the tray held by the patient Chansey.

"She'll be fine," she told him. "She's stable, and there's little chance of infection if the medication is reapplied in two days."

Nurse Joy paused, looking over Silver's thin, tired form.

"I recommend you getting some sleep as well as food," she said gently. "Worrying over her to the extent where you ignore your own body won't help her at this point."

Silver merely nodded to keep the peace.

"I have to get back to the Pokémon. Let me know when she wakes up."

Hours had passed since then, but Silver had failed to take her advice. It was drawing close to evening again, and he had failed to eat.

His head jerked up when the door had opened, but it was only Nurse Joy, holding onto a tray of food. She glanced at him with a small smile.

"Did you eat like a told you to?"

Silver automatically nodded, and he noticed her smile shrink slightly.

"I know you're lying," she said, placing the tray of food on the nightstand. "One of my Chansey has been in the cafeteria all day, and she hasn't seen you at all."

Silver merely huffed, blowing a stray strand of hair out of his face.

"I took the liberty of bringing you food along with some for Lyra when she wakes up, since you seem so determined to not leave this room. Can you at least tell me why?"

Silence spun around the room for a while. Silver considered not answering, but he eventually gave in.

"Because the last time I left her, _this_ happened," he said bitterly, face darkening. "And I'll be damned if I let it happen again."

Nurse Joy looked at him with sympathy. "You feel like this is your fault, don't you?"

"Oh, what gave that away?" he asked, sarcasm tinting his voice. He crossed his arms and looked out the window, seeing the ocean in the distance. He could see some departing ferries past the coastline. But there weren't nearly enough buildings in view for this to be Olivine. Cianwood. It had to be Cianwood. He supposed that Alakazam had made sure to bring him and Lyra as far as he could away from Ice Path while remaining in the region. It had been a long time since he'd been on this island. It had been back when he had been collecting badges. It made him feel a little better- just a little –to be so far away from the spot of the calamity.

"You couldn't possibly have known that this would have happened," the nurse said, getting up to leave.

_Woman, you don't know the half of it…_

"Try to eat something. And try to get some sleep tonight."

"On one condition," he unexpectedly spoke up. She glanced at him in curiosity. His metallic eyes were dead serious. "Unless it's her mother, don't let _anyone_ know that she's here. _Especially_ the media. Those people are still out there, and they'll want to finish their job."

Nurse Joy heard the solemnity in his voice and nodded slowly. "I promise."

And with that, she left.

After about fifteen minutes, he finally gave in to the pangs of hunger he'd been paying no attention to earlier. He picked at some of the food that the nurse had brought in.

Two hours passed and he was still foraging slowly through the cold food, hesitantly eating bits half-heartedly. He glanced at the clock. It late now, about eleven at night, and Lyra had still not woken up. It was troubling. Would the ordeal really have left her so exhausted? Was there something else wrong?

Great. More guilt was coming, now.

"I'm sorry," he muttered, not sure if he was even speaking to Lyra. He felt like he wasn't merely apologizing to her about this event. Rather, it was more like an apology to everyone he'd ever hurt in his training career.

He continued to pick at the food, moving bits of it around with his fingers and occasionally popping a piece into his mouth to chew slowly. As the food slipped down his throat, Lyra suddenly moaned, prompting Silver into choking.

Coughing, he managed to get the food down, and he looked over at the girl in alarm. She seemed to be suffering nightmares again, struggling against unseen foes. But small sounds were coming from her as well. Her eyelids seemed to be twitching and fluttering, which caused Silver to set the tray back onto the table before locking his eyes onto hers.

"Lyra?" he asked, suddenly hopeful.

The struggling eyelids finally parted to allow him to see her large, brown eyes finally look back at him. They seemed hazy and muddled, but they gazed into his own, and he felt warmth take root within him. The cinnamon eyes seemed to focus a bit more and she recognized him.

"Silver," she said in surprise, while he stared back in shock. She sighed shakily. "Thank heavens. I've had such horrible dreams. I'm so glad they weren't-"

She lifted a hand to her head, but stopped halfway, flinching terribly with a gasp as tears pricked the corners of her eyes. She glanced in confusion at her arm, only to see it covered completely in bandages.

"…real…" she finished in a quiet monotone. She started trembling violently, to Silver's dismay.

"S-Silver," she whispered hoarsely, and he could practically hear the fearful tears in her voice.

Reacting on instinct, he leaned towards her and gently pulled her forwards into a protective embrace. Briefly, he remembered how the nurse had told him to call her when Lyra woke up, but he disregarded it. The last thing Lyra needed right now was a doctor fussing over her while she was in such a state.

Lyra, had she not been so stressed and afraid, would have been surprised. Barring the awkward, painful embrace he'd held her in after the attack, when she was hardly conscious, this was the first time Silver had ever initiated a hug with her, rather than the other way around. Tears threatened to leak from her burning, watery eyes.

"_Silver, I'm scared,_" she whispered into his shoulder. She felt him stiffen momentarily, and she was terrified that he'd pull away from her. But instead, he held her a little more tightly.

"It's okay to feel scared," he quietly replied.

She shivered again, but she understood the meaning behind his words. In his own way, he was saying '_it's okay. I'm not going anywhere. No one else is here. You can cry._'

"Th-thank you," she whispered before breaking down, silently and completely for the first time in years. But, beneath her sorrow and fear, she felt a comforting warmth light up inside of her as her tears flowed freely onto Silver's shoulder.

Despite her overwhelming fear, she felt safe.

**(~)  
Well, there you have it. Sorry if it's lacking at all. I think it helped with some more character development, and there was some interactive stuff at the end. Sorry it wasn't longer, but I felt like what came next wouldn't come to a chapter close as nicely as this did. Sorry if you guys were anticipating more of an explanation from Lyra. That'll be next chapter.**

**Kuo Berries are real. But they were only available in Gen3 through Japanese E-Reader Cards. It's on Bulbapedia. I just made up the fact that they are more potent for healing burns than Rawst are.  
**

**Please review! And please vote in my current poll! 8D**

**See ya! ~Meta-Akira  
**


	18. Promise

**Hey there! Meta-Akira back once again. Sorry I fell behind on this one. I needed a bit of a break from writing, and I must say that my month-long break benefited me. I'm very pleased with this next chapter. I promise, the angst is coming to an end soon. Well, for now, anyways. And the romance part will soon be ramped up a bit, so you fluff-lovers can look forward to it. Still, it's going to be gradual. That's just my style. Especially with tsunderes like Silver complicating the process. X3**

**I have to thank my loverly reviewers. You guys keep my spirits and my creativity up: Spaztastic32, Mijumaruwott, Sapphiet, Cornelia Fox, IgglybuffPichuandOrcha3000, MarHeavenAngel, TheGreatProphet283, Foxgrl18, Kayojin Kobayashi, doggiefan, AikoAkahana, splitheart1120, MyuuMay, MarlinMarlen, Sparks101, Not So Tempramental Artist, starstrukkxxx, bandgeek14, and TheKimikoGirl. Altogether, a total of nineteen reviews! I love you guys! So freaking much! 8D**

**Kayojin Kobayashi went the extra distance and made lurvely fanart for my last chapter, "Safe".  
donttouchmytail . deviantart . com/#/d3h9xze  
Thank you so much! *hug***

**And without further ado, here is the next chapter! Read, enjoy, and review!  
I do not own the characters of HG and SS.**

**(~)**

Lyra had fallen asleep while being comforted by him twice now. Only this time it was just sleep, not a mini coma induced from fatigue and blood loss.

Despite Silver's reassurances to her to let her feelings out, he felt completely lost when she had begun to sob into his shoulder. His mind was panicked, and he had no idea of what to do. A part of him wanted to push her off of him so he could leave and escape this close situation as fast as possible.

Fortunately, his mind wasn't exactly controlling his limbs at the moment, and he was frozen in place, sitting still until Lyra's very quiet, almost whispered sobs drifted back into the slow steady pace of breathing that meant she was asleep.

When that had registered in his mind, he eased her off of him and back onto her bed before quietly making his way to the small couch that was on the other side of the room. It was cramped, and he couldn't lie completely comfortably, but the exhaustion of the past thirty-some hours weighed down on him like lead. Not even bothering to notice that the Absol had meandered back into the room, his eyelids crashed closed. Rolling onto his side, he fell asleep in moments.

o0O0o0O0o

The first thing that she could process in her mind that morning was the feeling of something warm and the slight throbbing sensation in both her arms.

Her eyes fluttered open groggily, as she faintly recalled that she was in the hospital. A brief sense of fear darted through her, but it was dampened quite quickly when she remembered how Silver of all people had hugged her. A tiny smile formed on her lips as she remembered how he had made her feel so safe despite all that had happened. It was so uncharacteristically _sweet_ of him to comfort her.

She craned her neck and was startled to see that the room was empty. She was afraid for a moment, but she mentally scolded herself, trying to reign in her fear. As she brought one hand up to rub her eyes, her fingers brushed against something soft.

Surprised, she looked down at her side to see something curled up on the bed beside her legs. A sleek, long-furred white Pokémon blinked up at her with maroon eyes set on a navy face. She was quite sure that she had never seen it before. But… something about it looked vaguely familiar.

"H-hello," she stuttered to the white Pokémon. "Where could you have come from?"

Absol cocked his head to one side, considering this girl. How interesting that so much could be harmed by her death. Appearance-wise, she didn't seem to stand out too much. Why her, of all people? She was special, of course, but why?

He decided not to think too much about it. He was simply fulfilling his duty in making sure bad things might be prevented. Ignoring her question, he looked away indifferently and laid his head back onto his front paws.

Lyra hesitantly reached towards the fluffy white creature's furry head, unsure if it would let her pet him.

Absol glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and she stopped. He rolled his eyes and closed them. Taking this as something of a permission to continue, Lyra rested her hand on his white fur, just beneath the navy scythe that adorned his forehead.

"Y-you kind of remind me of Silver," she chuckled weakly. "Even the eye roll is familiar."

"Sol," the creature uttered quietly as she moved her hand to stroke his back.

This went on for a while. Lyra had been a bit afraid and nervous at first, since Silver wasn't around. But this Pokémon didn't look like he was leaving any time soon, and with his aloof personality, he reminded her of the redhead. And that soothed her nerves somewhat.

"I don't think I've ever seen one of you before," she murmured to it. "You don't look like a Johto or Kanto native Pokémon. But you look so familiar. Like I've seen a picture of you or something. I would get my Pokedex, but it's in my bag, and I don't really know where it is right now."

Absol didn't make any motion to show he was interested in- or even listening to –what she had to say.

Lyra didn't think much of it, though. Whether or not the Pokémon was a social butterfly didn't matter. He was company, a comforting presence, which was something that she needed at the moment.

"I wonder… what kind of Pokémon you are," she said softly.

"It's an Absol."

Lyra stifled a scream, instead gasping as her head whipped around to look at the door. Silver was standing there, looking much cleaner and a lot less tired than he had last night. In his hands was a tray of food.

He frowned at her.

"Don't turn your head so fast unless you want to give your neck a crick," he said, coming into the room.

"Sorry, you scared me…" she said with a weak smile.

"No, really? I couldn't tell," he said with one of the eye rolls that Lyra had been referring to earlier..

He walked up to the bedside, placing the tray of food onto the nightstand before taking a seat in the chair next to her bed.

"I saw that Absol before we got to Blackthorn. I asked you to look it up in your Pokedex," he said.

"Oh," Lyra responded, feeling relieved that Silver was within her sights again. "That must be why I thought it looked so familiar. But… why is it here?"

"It followed me, I guess," Silver explained in an uninterested tone with a one-shouldered shrug. He decided not to go into detail about Absol. The last thing he needed was to get Lyra's fears stoked again. "And it's a good thing it did. Helped us out a lot back… there."

Lyra paled a bit, but other than that, her face did not change at the mention of Ice Path. She cast her gaze about, her eyes finally settling on the tray of lunch food. Silver didn't seem to be giving it much consideration, which could only mean that he wasn't intending on being the one to eat it.

"Oh, Silver… did you bring in that food for me?"

His mercury eyes flicked to the tray and back to her.

"Who else could it be for? Absol?"

"No, I just didn't-"

"If you don't want it, don't eat it," he deadpanned. "Hospital food can be crappy."

"No, that's not what I meant. I just… um, thank you! It was thoughtful of you to get that for me," Lyra said with a smile.

"Hn, don't think much of it. You haven't eaten in over thirty-six hours," Silver answered, narrowing his eyes at her. Not that he was angry at her, no, just the opposite. But that smile seemed a little out of place. It was a smile, yes, not completely fake. But something about it just… didn't seem right. And he'd bet his own Meganium that it had something to do with… recent happenings.

At his words, Lyra's stomach growled voraciously at being reminded that she hadn't consumed any nutrition lately. She blushed from the abrupt noise and chuckled weakly as Silver wordlessly handed her the tray.

"I-I guess I _am_ a bit hungry… Thanks," she mumbled. She eyed the food tray on her lap, looking at the fruit salad and cold chicken wrap. She fumbled for the fork, wincing as her arms throbbed particularly badly at the movement. She began to carefully and slowly pick at the mixture of pineapple, strawberry, melon, and Pecha pieces, trying not to aggravate her bite wounds.

Silver suddenly stood up, making his way over to the door.

"S-Silver?"

He glanced back at her, raising an eyebrow as his hand rested on the doorknob. Her cheeks flushed a very slight pink, and she looked down at the tray in her lap, as if she was a bit ashamed at herself.

"I… I just… I don't want you t-to…" she trailed off quietly, glancing back up at him apologetically.

"Don't worry," he said. "I'll be right back. I'm getting the nurse. I told her yesterday that I'd tell her when you finally woke up."

Lyra's face clouded with puzzlement. "Woke… up… What do you mean by that?"

He sighed, "You were out for over twenty-four hours after the… incident. You only came to late last night."

Lyra paled slightly, but there was still confusion in her cinnamon eyes. "But… if I woke up last night… why didn't you tell…"

Unexpectedly, his cold metallic eyes softened as he leaned against the door. "You were stressed enough last night. I didn't want to put you through anything else while you were like that."

There was a silence between them as they stared at each other.

"Thank you, Silver," Lyra whispered to him, a tiny smile on her face

He nodded and looked away, feeling his heart skip a beat and his face feel a little warm. He opened the door and quickly left.

"Dammit, I have to stop acting like this! What the hell is wrong with me?" he hissed under his breath bitterly once the door was shut behind him.

_Whatever it is, it's getting damn annoying. It's like I can't even think straight sometimes. It's driving me crazy! Like last night. I don't know _what_ compelled me to act like that._

His quick pace down the hall slowed a bit as he continued to think.

_It's just… she looked so scared. I don't think… she ever looked that damn scared before for as long as I've known her. I… I didn't like it. No… I _hated_ it. It… hurt._

He clenched his fists and his jaw, trying to reign in his emotions. He couldn't for the life of him figure out why he was suddenly so… different around Lyra. And right now, he didn't want to keep thinking about it. He decided to just ignore the emotions, push them away, try to forget.

"Besides," he muttered to himself. "I have bigger things to think about. Like RP. After Lyra speaks to the nurse, I'll get an explanation out of her."

Ending his reflections there, he headed to the front desk to talk to Nurse Joy.

o0O0o0O0o

Lyra looked up from alternating between solemnly stroking Absol and trying to pick at her food as a knock came from the door before Nurse Joy opened it.

"Miss Lyra Soul?" she inquired, smiling gently at the bandaged girl.

"Yes?" Lyra said, smiling weakly.

"It's good to see you awake," the nurse said with a nod as she came in, Silver trailing behind her. He took a seat in the chair next to Lyra's bed. Nurse Joy spotted the tray. "And eating as well. I see your friend is taking good care of you."

Silver looked away at this, but he made no comment.

"So how are your arms feeling?" Nurse Joy asked.

Lyra winced as she was reminded. She had been trying her best to feed herself clumsily with her tightly bandaged arms. "They still hurt- a lot."

"What kind of pain, if you could describe it," Nurse Joy asked sympathetically.

"Um… Well, they're very stiff feeling. And they throb a lot. If I move a bit too much, it feels kind of like a wave of sharp pain going through them," she said hesitantly, tears pricking at the corners of her eyes as Nurse Joy carefully felt Lyra's arms for any signs of swelling.

Silver's fingers twitched as he felt the sudden instinct to take Lyra's hand to help support her.

_Arg, quit thinking like that, idiot! Leave all that confusing crap behind. _

He clenched his jaw and remained still as he watched. Nurse Joy questioned Lyra about whether or not she'd felt various symptoms of anything as a result of the prolonged contact with the ice, or if she had felt feverish lately, and the like. Lyra usually answered with a yes or no, not elaborating much and refusing to touch upon too many details of what had happened in her occasional and brief explanations.

Once Nurse Joy had finished with her questions and inspections, she smiled as she stood up.

"I actually think that we can change your bandages tonight instead of tomorrow like I had previously assumed. I'll reapply the salves and a Pokémon will be stationed in here tonight that will use Aromatherapy to help your burn heal faster while you sleep. Until I say otherwise, try not to move your arms too much."

"Yes, ma'am," Lyra said politely, nodding.

"Oh," the nurse stopped, looking back at Lyra as if she'd just remembered something. "I haven't alerted anyone to your whereabouts, in accordance with your friend's wish. But, if you'd like, I could contact your mother and inform her of the situa-"

"No!" Lyra blurted out quickly, sitting up straight, and eyes wide. She noticed both Silver and the nurse looking at her, Nurse Joy with confusion and Silver with something like suspicion. "Ah, I-I mean, it will be best if I called her myself. I mean, I need to call her anyways, and I want to speak to her myself to explain."

Nurse Joy blinked, but she smiled and nodded. "If that's what you want to do. I'll be heading back to the front desk, if you don't need anything else."

Lyra smiled and shook her head, so the nurse left, closing the door behind her.

Silver got up again and picked up Lyra's bag, sitting by the end of the bed. He rummaged around in it, ignoring Lyra's questioning stare. Finally, he found the thing he was looking for. He pulled out Lyra's Pokegear and flipped it open. Odd, it was warm, as if it had been in use recently. But he was sure Lyra hadn't used it at all. The bag hadn't been touched from where he had set it when they got here. He disregarded the fact and looked at the two screens.

"Silver, what are you-?"

"_I'm_ not doing anything. _You're _going to call your mother," he said, scrolling through the different features it had to offer before landing on the phone option. Lyra's mother was at the top of the contact list.

"But-"

"You said you were going to call her. So call her," he said shortly, selecting the number and thrusting the Pokegear at Lyra.

"I-"

"It's ringing," he said, and Lyra blanched before grabbing the Pokegear and holding it up to her ear.

Silver watched the girl closely as several seconds passed and the girl's face grew somewhat nervous. He could hear a _click_ and a "Hello?" reach his ears faintly.

Lyra mustered up a smile, but Silver's eyes narrowed again as he noticed that it wasn't completely genuine.

"Mom, hi! It's me!"

….

"Yeah, I'm glad to talk to you again, too."

….

"Oh, just checking in, you know. Yes, I've been doing great!"

_What?_

Silver stared blatantly at Lyra. Did he just mishear her?

"No, no. I'm just traveling with a friend right now. We've been training together and making good progress!"

….

"You don't have to worry about me, Mom. I'm just fine. Everything's been going wonderfully. I'm in Mahogany Town right now."

Silver couldn't believe it. Lyra was completely lying to her mother about everything. Lyra seemed to be uneasily trying to ignore his astounded stare as she continued her conversation.

"Yes, yes, of course! I'll keep that in mind… Uh huh… Mm-hm. Yep."

….

"Ah… v-visit? Um… I don't think I'll be able to any time soon. My schedule's packed. Lance just called me today saying that there was a challenger and I need to be present at the Plateau tomorrow… Yeah… I'm sorry I won't be able to make it… But I'll let you know. Fang says hi! …I love you, too, Mom. Bye."

Lyra sighed as she flipped the Pokegear closed and placed it on the nightstand. She flinched when she saw Silver glaring at her.

"Uh, S-Silver… what's the matter?" she asked, trying to sound nonchalant but failing.

"What… the _hell_," she flinched at his angry tone, "was _that?_"

"What do you mean?" she asked in a small voice.

"You know perfectly well what I mean, lying to your mother!" he snapped at her. "Why are you playing dumb about it? Why the hell did you tell your mother that you were perfectly fine? Or that you were in Mahogany? Or that Lance called you? Or, oh, I dunno, why did you _not_ tell her you were _mauled by four effing Houndoom?_"

She looked away, tears in the corners of her eyes again.

"I just don't want her to worry about me," she said shakily. But Silver was not about to be pacified by this weak excuse.

"Quit lying to me, _Soul_!" he barked as he jumped to his feet, emphasizing her last name so that she winced. "Don't give me that shit! This has _nothing_ to do with worrying your mother! Tell me what's going on!"

"I can't tell anyone!" Lyra whimpered.

"_Why_ are you protecting them?" he asked, exasperated.

"I HAVE TO KEEP THEM SAFE!" Lyra suddenly exploded, tears leaking from her eyes.

Silver was struck dumb for a moment.

"Wait… what? You _want _to protect those scumbags who attacked you?"

"I… huh?" Lyra asked, confused.

"Who are you talking about?" he asked, his voice back to a normal level.

Lyra bit her lip, her fingers curling tightly around her bed sheets. Absol had moved to the foot of the bed, watching the two warily.

"Who is it that you're protecting?" Silver questioned her.

Lyra's fists tightened around the fabric. A single tear ran down her face.

Comprehension slowly dawned on Silver as he watched her conflicted face filled with emotion.

"This isn't the first time you've encountered these freaks… is it?" he asked, more like stated, in a low tone.

After a few moments, Lyra closed her eyes tightly and shook her head, another few tears squeezing out.

Silver let out a big breath as he slowly sat back down.

_Damn. My future self was right. They were going to play around with her emotions first before actually killing her. I guess this had already started before I met Celebi…_

"I think… you'd better explain everything to me. No secrets," he said quietly.

Lyra's eyes shot open and stared at him fearfully.

"I can't. Th-they'll know… I can't let them hurt anyone!"

"What do you mean?" Silver asked her firmly. "Tell me, Lyra."

Minutes passed by in silence before Lyra sniffed and decided to let it out.

"They told me that they knew where I was and everything I did. They said that they were watching me. They would always watch me. And if… i-if I-I t-t-told anyone… th-they'd know and they would… they would…"

"…hurt you?" Silver guessed, his voice deadly calm, but he was boiling mad on the inside.

Lyra shook her head miserably. "…kill them. If I told, they said they'd kill anyone who was close to me. E-Ethan, Pr-Professor Elm, M-Mom, even…" her eyes flicked to Silver for a few moments.

He felt like something had hit him in his solar plexus. She had kept her silence because those creeps had threatened to kill people she knew.

"That's a lot to keep bottled up in one person," he observed. Several more tears flowed from Lyra's eyes. "I think it would be best if you told me about these people."

"But-"

"No buts," he said with a firm glare. Lyra hesitated, but gave in with a resigned nod. "Good. Now who are these people?"

"I… I don't know exactly," she murmured, having lost her appetite as she pushed the food tray away from her lap. "All I know is the initials RP."

_Damn. I was hoping she knew what those stood for._

"They… I don't know who they are, but they're _everywhere._ They told me that they watch what I'm doing and hear what I'm saying from almost anywhere," she whispered, glancing fearfully at the window as if expecting to see some shady figure staring through the glass at her.

Silver placed his hand on her shoulder. "I have Gengar patrolling the center again. And Absol… I think Absol can sense bad things before they happen, so I'm sure it's safe."

She nodded and gulped before continuing. "They aren't like T-Team Rocket. They don't wear uniforms. They don't have distinguishing looks or similar articles of clothing. Whenever I encounter them, they are always random citizens I bumped into in various towns."

Silver frowned.

"It… it got to the point where I felt so paranoid. Like I couldn't trust anyone because… any of them could be in with RP…_ watching me_."

Lyra wiped her eyes with the back of her hand before fixing Silver with a trembling stare. "You remember that guy who almost got into a fight with me in Violet? He's in it."

Rage flew through Silver's veins as his fists clenched.

"What? I'll kill that punk!" he snarled. "How did you know?"

"He accidentally tripped when the others ambushed me back in Ice Path," she muttered. "I saw his face. But none of the others'."

Silver was trying to keep his temper in check. He wanted to hunt down each and every one of these people and introduce them to his fists and Sneasel's claws.

"When did this start?"

"About… about three months ago," Lyra replied, ashamed. "It started off small, and I thought that maybe this was just a group of Rockets or something. But as time went on, I found that they were much more sinister. I haven't found out their motives yet, but… I think they might be aiming for something… else. I don't know what, though."

"How many times have they harassed you?"

Lyra paused for a minute as she thought it over. "Maybe… five times? This was the first time they actually attacked me, but… they tried to last time. Fang charged at them, though, defeated them, and I flew away on Fia's back."

Lyra and Silver lapsed into a tense silence. Silver was thinking quickly on where these people would strike next. That ominous warning that they'd be back with a stronger source of power. Those four Alakazam were tough enough. What could be stronger than a team of fully-evolved Psychic Pokémon?

"Silver…" Lyra said quietly. He looked up at her, and she looked saddened, though the tears were gone. An air of vulnerability hung about her.

"Well, what is it?" he asked in a monotone voice.

"You probably shouldn't stick around with me anymore," she said reluctantly.

He arched an eyebrow at her. "What kind of crazy notion made you say that?"

"Well, it's dangerous for you. Since you know. And they saw you with me. You… you're a _target_," she whispered the last word, looking despondent. "I don't want you to get hurt or… or k-killed because of me. I couldn't stand it if that ever happened. You should l-leave. You don't have to stay with me."

Silver stared at her. He was feeling a bit irate that she thought he would just go and never look back because of this. But he was also a bit touched that she felt that way about his wellbeing, even though she was clearly the one in more danger. He felt that bizarre wave of protectiveness again.

"Geez, you're annoying. I told you already. Or have you forgotten? I don't break my word, especially to you. I'm not going to leave you to deal with all this crap by yourself," he said, crossing his arms.

"But you said that you would just train with me," Lyra protested. "You did that already. You wouldn't be breaking your word if you left. Besides, I never asked for you to get involved in all of this. And I could never ask you to put yourself in that kind of danger for me."

"I'm not saying you should ask," he retorted firmly. "You don't _need_ to ask. I'm making a promise to you here and now _of my own free will_. I'm sticking my nose into it, and there's not a single damn thing you can do about it. I'm making this my business, and I'm not going to leave you to fight this alone. And I'm not going to let those freaks hurt you again if I can help it. No arguments."

He finished with such a tone of finality in order to dissuade Lyra from, erm… dissuading him. He watched Lyra's face as tears filled her eyes again. Well, that wasn't the effect he'd intended on.

"Wh-what did I say? Why are you crying?" he asked, the firm note in his voice gone.

"I-I don't mean to," she said, wiping at her eyes once more. When she lowered her hand, she was smiling, no, beaming at him, her cheeks a bit flushed from the tears of the conversation. Genuinely, this time. It made his breath catch in his chest and his heart pound a bit faster than usual. At least he'd done something right for once to make her smile like that.

"I just want to say thank you, Silver," she said gently, still smiling at him. "You don't even know how much that possibly means to me. I was afraid you would leave. I-I didn't want you to go, but I really didn't want you to stay and get hurt. But to hear you say that… I… Thank you. It makes me feel blessed to have someone like you in my life."

Silver couldn't help but smile slightly back at her, feeling warmth spreading through him. Whther that was because of her smile or her words, he couldn't tell- and didn't care.

"Anytime, Lyra. Anytime."

**(~)  
Daaawwww!  
As you can see, Silver does have his more jerk-like moments to keep in with his tsundere character. He's not getting soft _that_ fast, folks. But you can see he's starting to feel differently, even though he's kind of fighting it.**

**I certainly hope this was worth the wait. Things are probably going to pick up again in events either in the next chapter or the one after. Then we get to the meat of the plot. I have no idea where we are in terms of halfway, a third of the way, three-quarters of the way done. Pah, it all depends on how much I write and how many chapters I write in. It's not going to wind down for a while yet, so no worries! **

**Sorry if I disappointed with Lyra's explanation when it comes to detail. Lyra's unfortunately not too much more informed than Silver. We still don't have a name or motive. At least we get an insight into some of her behaviour in previous chapters. Perhaps some of you sharp readers already have some sort of idea of what may happen in the future. I've dropped a couple hints. But please, if you do figure things out, don't ruin it for anyone who hasn't yet. You may PM me if you do wish to discuss possibilities. 8D**

**Fang wants you to review. And he also wants to know why he didn't appear in this chapter. I'm sorry, Fang, you'll be in the next one! Promise!**

**See ya!~ Meta-Akira  
**


	19. Aromatherapy

**Hey guys! Akira here once more. I'm sorry this didn't get out earlier, bu the past three weeks have been crammed-to-the-gills busy.  
First, I went to see Owl City in concert at the Fillmore in Detroit. *squee* 8D  
One of the most amazing things I've ever experienced! I love Owl City's music. And Adam Young was such a nice guy.  
AJFSLAGJRKDSAHG I'm on an Owl City craze right now. A lot of my drawings are reflecting on some of his newest songs. I have one for Ferriswhee;shipping up on my DA account for "Deer in the Headlights" if anyone wants to see. And a non-Pokemon WIP for the song "The Real World".**

**Second, I went up north to my cottage for the Fourth of July. Hope my fellow Americans enjoyed theirs thoroughly and got to conspicuously blow things up (or at least watch things get conspicuously blown up)! 8D  
I got thoroughly sunburned and I pulled muscle when me and my niece wiped out spectacularly on a Jet Ski. XD**

**Going a bit further back, I rolled my ankle at a friend's grad party. Not fun. :/  
It's still sore, three weeks later. I can move on it just fine, but it still twinges now and then.**

**Oh, and I'm getting a job (FINALLY)! Huzzah! I'm working at a roller skating rink starting next week! YAY!**

**Anyways, enough of my life, let's get on with things, shall we?**

**Thanks for the reviews: ChaosAngel4us, TheKimikoGirl, Mijumaruwott, Sparks101, splitheart1120, Kaiyojin Kobayashi, AwesomeWolfLover, Sapphiet, Spaztastic32, Emeraldshard, and iRiD3PONi3S.  
Thanks for all the encouragement! ^^**

**As always, read, enjoy, and review!  
I don't, nor will I ever own the characters of HG and SS.**

**(~)**

Lyra and Silver had intermittently continued with their conversation, their clusters of sentences bookended by bouts of thoughtful silence that both seemed okay with. It helped to ease the supersaturated tension that surrounded them like a cloud. Lyra had finally regained enough of her appetite to continue to fumble awkwardly with her food, nibbling at the cold chicken wrap Silver had brought her earlier. Occasionally, their time together in the room would be punctuated by abrupt gasps from Lyra as pain surged through her bandaged arms anew.

"I know Nurse Joy said that the stuff she put on my arms would stop the pain from lasting forever," she hissed, her face sweaty and scrunched up during a particularly painful bout as she hugged her arms against her abdomen. "But sometimes it really… feels… like my arm is still on fire… And the rest of the bites really throb…"

"I'm sure with treatment it'll fade," Silver said solemnly, hesitantly resting a hand on her shoulder to try to soothe her tensed, hunched figure.

It took a little while for the episode to pass, and after Lyra shakily exhaled and straightened up somewhat, carefully wiping her forehead with the back of her hand, she noticed Silver's attempts to help her through it. She flashed him a weak but very grateful smile that made his heart thump in his chest.

"Thanks," she breathed, her shoulders rising and falling quickly.

"No… no problem," he responded with a small stutter.

_Idiot… Control yourself._

After Lyra's body managed to relax once more from the pain, she broke the silence again.

"Silver, how's Fang? I was so afraid for him. Th-_they_ said that they could kill him if I didn't cooperate…" she trailed off, shame-facedly.

"I can let him out if you want," he responded quietly. "Nurse Joy said he made a full recovery and that he was mostly just exhausted from the whole thing."

"Could you please?" she asked, gazing at him with her wide, cinnamon eyes.

As if he could say no when she was looking at him like that. It drove him nuts to know that her look could persuade him to do whatever she wished without even knowing why it held so much power over him.

"Fine," he said, getting up to retrieve her bag."Just make sure he doesn't bump into anything important."

He felt through the bag, opening the pocket that held the six cool spheres. Four Pokeballs, a Moon Ball, and an Ultra Ball. He could count out the Moon Ball and the Ultra Ball- which contained Pitfall, Lyra's Nidoking and Garnet, Lyra's Shiny Gyarados, respectively, knowing that the starters always came in standard Pokeballs. But as to which one, he couldn't tell.

"Er, which of these four is Fang's?" he asked uncertainly, holding them out in his hands. He could always figure out which one of his own Pokeballs belonged to which of his Pokémon, but when it came to a different trainer's, he had no clue.

Lyra giggled slightly, a sound Silver refused to admit that he found more and more enjoyable each time. She examined the Pokeballs he held and eventually pointed to one cushioned in his right hand.

"That one," she said.

"How can you tell just by looking?" he asked, bemused. Lyra just giggled again, to his suppressed delight.

He pressed the button in the middle without further ado, and the flash of light that burst out from the sphere took the shape of Lyra's eternally loyal and enormous blue reptile. The Feraligatr, on all fours, blinked groggily, but upon seeing his trainer awake and in much better condition, sheer happiness erupted onto the creature's face. Fang lumbered over to her bedside, and she hugged his thick blue neck, the joyfulness of the Pokémon clearly reciprocated in the girl's demeanor.

"Oh, Fang, you're alright. I was so worried. Those Alakazam had you, and I thought…" she murmured happily, retreating from her embrace and stroking his scaly nose.

Silver had to smile slightly at the reunion, if only because Lyra was so happy. But… looking at the two of them reminded him of something.

_Oh yeah… That insane attack spree that her Feraligatr went on. It was like he was on a rampage or something. And I _know_ I heard Lyra whisper something before he snapped._

Silver decided that now was as good a time as any to find out why Fang had gone berserk.

"Lyra," he started seriously. She and Fang looked up at him. "I have a question about… back there."

Lyra's face instantly grew uneasy, and Fang growled low and guttural in his throat. But Lyra quieted him with a few strokes on the head.

"Oh," she said, biting her lip. But she gave a tiny nod. "Go ahead."

"Right after you got bit, you sort of zoned out. But you whispered something that made Fang go berserk and attack anything in sight," he explained. "He wiped the floor with the Alakazam and most of the Houndoom, and he almost attacked me."

Lyra blinked in confusion and surprise. "Fang used Outrage?"

"If that's what it's called, then yes," Silver affirmed, frowning at her. "You gave the order. Don't you remember?"

"I-I must have been really out of it at the time," she replied in a tired voice, flinching as she brought a hand to her forehead and pain flashed through her arms.

"So… what was that? Because in all the times I battled you, I've _never_ seen anything like that before."

Lyra was quiet for a bit, Fang's large head resting next to her pillow. Absol had taken up a spot on the couch and was listening to the conversation lazily with one eye open.

"It's called Outrage, and it's a very difficult attack to master," she said. "It's extremely powerful, but also extremely dangerous and risky to attempt learning. In fact, many trainers have gotten injuries from their own Pokémon because they were inexperienced and tried to teach Outrage to their Pokémon before they were able to control it. They didn't know how hard it would be to control. One kid got severely hurt when his Granbull learned it and used before it was mastered."

"So… What does it do?"

"It's a dragon-type move. It powers up a Pokémon and sends them into an unstoppable rampage for a short while. It's like Thrash, only much more powerful. The Pokémon is pumped up with adrenaline, meaning that it can go all-out for much longer than usual, not stopping for breaks. However, it can be a very costly move, since once the adrenaline rush fades, the Pokémon exhausts itself, but still is enraged. It will still want to fight, but the sudden exhaustion from exerting itself so much added on top of its anger results in confusion, which can make the Pokémon mistake allies for enemies."

"When did you teach this to Fang?" Silver asked, astounded by the description of the attack.

"In Blackthorn," she replied flatly. "That was my 'errands' that I needed to do. I felt I needed it as a last resort if I did see… _them_ again. I needed something powerful and unexpected, just in case. There is a family who teaches moves to Pokémon in Blackthorn. They rarely agree to teach that particular move, but since I was the champion, they decided to help me train Fang to use it. It half-worked. Fang had trouble with it. He couldn't get himself to induce the adrenaline spike needed to boost his power. We spent all day on it, and we had the basics of it, but I felt frustrated that we couldn't get it down right. I felt that maybe it would get better. Apparently, it did, but I don't even remember it…"

"It must have been the situation," Silver said, crossing his arms as he thought it over. "Any old battle wouldn't get his emotions riled up enough to have his adrenaline spike that much. Hell, maybe not even a battle with Lance could get it to happen. But under all the stress of what was going on back there… with you in trouble… I think that's what triggered it."

"Maybe. I didn't see it. What happened?"

"Fang stiffened and got this red glow around him. He broke out of the Psychic attack and _curb-stomped_ the Alakazam. He also took down three Houndoom with a Hydro Cannon and went back to throttling the Alakazam without missing a beat. Seriously, if they hadn't teleported away, I'm not sure if those Pokémon would've survived," he said bluntly. It was saying something. Pokémon were naturally a lot tougher than humans were, and it took a lot of abuse to actually kill one rather than make it faint. And most Pokémon were above excess brutality to the point of permanent damage. To say that Fang of all Pokémon was in such a state of mentality that he may have outright killed four Alakazam, and maybe the Houndoom and even Silver, was kind of chilling to say the least.

Lyra looked a little afraid, and Fang was staring at the floor, not sure if his trainer was disappointed in him for his actions. He hadn't been in control at the time.

Silver noticed Lyra's troubled look, and he sighed.

"Look," Silver said. "H-he was probably still a bit inexperienced with the move and the rage and instincts he was feeling was something he wasn't used to."

To his dismay, Lyra looked even more upset. "But that's just it! I decided to have him learn it anyways, with no regard as to how it may affect him. It was my fault that he was put through something like that! And… and then _you_ almost got hurt by it… Oh, this-"

"Hey!" he said sharply with a scowl, reaching out to grasp her shoulder and make her stop her worried rambles. "This was _not_ your fault! Quit moaning about it! I'm fine, aren't I? Meganium blindsided Fang when he mistook me for an enemy and snapped him out of it. And if you didn't notice, the main reason you're _alive_ right now is because that enormous blue reptile of yours went Primape shit on those Pokémon! He did it to protect you, not because he wanted to suddenly be a bloodthirsty berserker!"

He exhaled slightly after his reprimand. He felt like he needed to walk around a bit.  
"Just… keep that in mind and don't friggin' beat yourself up about it. That won't do us any good."

He was headed for the door, but Lyra's voice stopped him again.

"Silver," she said, looking at him in concern. "I didn't notice this before but… you're limping."

"Huh?" He turned back to face her, and only then did his mind actually register the dull pain in his ankle that had been present the whole time.

_Oh yeah… The Nurse did say I must have twisted it. Funny, I haven't even thought about it._

"What happened to your leg?" she asked.

"Ankle, actually," he corrected, rolling his eyes. "And it's not important."

"It is. To me, at least," she protested in response.

Silver's heart skipped a beat when she said that, trying to keep down any thoughts that she might value his wellbeing more than the average person.

"My ankle is nothing of concern. You've got burns and bites, so it's nothing to worry about," he retorted, looking away.

"Silver, just because I got hurt pretty badly doesn't mean that your injuries aren't worth a darn. Now get over here and let me see it," she said in a surprisingly firm and authoritative voice.

Silver blinked at her, slightly astonished. It was only on his way back to his chair that he was really made aware of his limp. He was so focused on Lyr- er… _other things_ that he hadn't cared to put any thought towards the discomfort from his ankle.

He plopped into his seat and tugged his pant leg upwards to reveal his left ankle all covered up in a long, elastic cloth wrap. Its end was held snugly in place with a little metal clasp. He reluctantly tugged off his shoe, which was feeling uncomfortably small now that he thought about it, undid the clasp, and unwound the wrap until the loosened cloth slipped off.

He grimaced slightly. He hadn't thought he'd hurt his ankle that badly. It was rather swollen, even the top of his instep was inflamed, and a mottled purplish bruise decorated his ankle down to the side of his foot.

"See?" he said, taking a stab at sarcasm. "It's nothing important at all."

Lyra disregarded his deadpan snark and looked at his ankle with slight concern. "Did this happen when Fang attacked you?"

"No," Silver responded. "I twisted it after I saw Absol. For… some reason… I knew his appearance had something to do with you, so I came running as fast as I could. Stupid move, really, when you stop to consider the fact that the floor was covered in ice."

Lyra looked up from his ankle to gaze at him. It took him a few seconds to realize she was looking at him, but when he did, his face felt warm and he shifted uncomfortably.

"Wh-what?"

"Were you really that worried about me?"

His heartbeat seemed to stutter as much as his speech. He was sure his face was getting a bit red.

"I-It wasn't a big d-deal or anything!" he stammered in protest. "I… I didn't even notice I'd hurt my ankle un-until we got here. So. Don't go thinking it was a big deal!"

Now it was Absol's turn to roll his eyes. Humans. It was pretty clear to _him_ that the red-haired one cared for the female a lot more than he dared let on. He didn't need Absol Intuition to tell him that. But from what he was seeing, the male was either ignorant or in denial. Probably a bit of both. And something the male failed to notice was that the female's face was a bit pink as well.

Humans were hopeless creatures when it came to expression. Absol _hmph_ed and trotted out of the room, bored.

"Silver, Absol just left," Lyra pointed out, cutting through the excessively thick amount of awkward that seemed to float through the room after Silver's sputtering. "Do you think he… senses…?"

"Oh, him? Nah," Silver said, gratefully leaping on the change of subject. "He probably is just taking a walk or something. When he senses something, he gets this really serious look and his eyes seem to flash."

"Oh," Lyra's tense shoulders relaxed again.

"…Not to bring up a bitter subject again…" he started uneasily. "But there was something said by those goons that worried me. They said, just before they teleported away that they'd be back with a greater source of power, or something like that."

Instead of looking terrified as Silver had feared, Lyra just gazed at him seriously.

"Silver. Few Pokémon can stand up to a team of high-leveled Alakazam. Even if they're up against Dark-types, Alakazam can cover themselves with Focus Blast."

Silver nodded grimly.

"So you understand what that means?" she asked after a painfully long pause.

He nodded again, jaw only unclenching so he could speak his next sentence.

"They must be after a Legendary."

o0O0o0O0o

They would have kept talking. They were planning to continue the conversation. But after Silver's flat, ominous statement that affirmed what they had both been thinking- or was certain of, in Silver's case- they found themselves in a solemn silence that stretched endlessly for hours as both processed their thoughts. Silver also used the time to limp out to the cafeteria and refill Lyra's tray with dinner as well as grabbing some food for himself. Fang had at some point curled up next to the sofa and fallen asleep. Absol was still out, and no word had come in from Gengar.

Neither of them felt comfortable to breach the quiet as of yet, so it continued to drag. It wasn't awkward or uncomfortable. It just seemed like nothing could be said at this point yet. The statement had to sink in.

So neither was too surprised when Nurse Joy showed up a few hours later, tray in hand and a Chansey following close behind her, holding something.

"Hello, Lyra," she greeted the brunette kindly. "How are your arms?"

"Still hurting," Lyra replied with a slight grimace.

"That's to be expected," Nurse Joy said with a rueful smile. "The pain will still be around for a while, even after treatment, and I'll need you to be extra careful when you're released from here. But I think things will be much better after tonight. Now let's get to changing your bandages."

Lyra nibbled on her lower lip a bit in apprehension. She apparently was not looking forward to the experience.

Silver knew what she was going to say before she even looked at him with slight fear in her eyes and opened her mouth to speak.

"Don't even ask. I'm not going anywhere," he said shortly.

She sighed in relief. "I'm not so good with… this… Th-thank you, Silver."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever," he said, trying to sound off-handed while looking away to hide his reddened face.

Lyra had braced herself as Nurse Joy carefully unraveled the bandages. She looked at her maimed arms through squinted eyes and her face paled a bit before squeezing her eyes shut again. It wasn't as if she was afraid of looking at wounds and blood. But to see your own arms that had once been perfectly whole covered in bites, burns, and black and blue would be unsettling to many people. She had been either unconscious or too dazed to see the actual damage before. She shivered once before nodding to allow the Nurse to continue.

"We'll need to redress these wounds before wrapping them up again," she explained as she picked up one of the tubes Silver remembered from yesterday.

Lyra tried to keep a straight face through the entire process, but occasionally her face would wince as twinges of pain panged through. Nurse Joy was incredibly patient and understanding with her, always asking if Lyra was ready before moving on to dress the next puncture. The worst was when she got to the burn. Lyra's face blanched and she hissed through clenched teeth, eyes squeezed closed once more. Her left hand- which was the arm that had already been bandaged again, instinctively searched around and found its way into Silver's, shakily locking her fingers with his.

His blood pounded quite loudly in his ears. He cast his gaze around fruitlessly for something to distract himself with. However, despite his half-panicked mind in an incoherent frenzy, he allowed her to take comfort in his touch. Heart thumping and face red, he hesitantly closed his fingers around hers and gave her hand what he hoped was a reassuring squeeze.

Though he was sure he would give himself hell for this later, all his muddled mind could manage to notice right now was the feeling of her fingers interlocked with his. As if all the feeling in his body was now only located in his right hand.

"Okay, we're all finished!" Nurse Joy said cheerfully, snapping Silver out of whatever it was that had been keeping him stupidly spellbound.

Lyra carefully eased her eyes back open, the rims of them slightly damp. She examined her freshly bandaged arms, but blinked when she realized she was still holding Silver's hand. He caught her eye before his mercury gaze flicked away nervously. He released her hand, keeping his eyes trained on the window and not on her.

"Um… Thank you," she said in an almost timid voice, her face a bit pink.

"Yeah," he cleared his throat. "It's alright."

Nurse Joy, who had been consulting with Chansey at the moment, exchanged the tray with whatever it was that Chansey had been holding, and turned back to face the two teenagers with a smile. There was a something wrapped in a small fleece blanket in her arms.

"Lyra, I'd like you to introduce you to Cerasus. She's a juvenile Cherubi, a Pokémon from Sinnoh," the Nurse angled the bundle so Silver and Lyra could see a petite Pokémon with small, bright black eyes. It resembled a large cherry with two tiny little feet and a smaller cherry dangling next to it. Lyra smiled at the adorable little thing. The little Cherubi blinked at Lyra inquisitively before smiling and wiggling the leaves on her head. "She was bred for her ability to use Aromatherapy. She's very young and small, since she's not too long out of her egg, but her Aromatherapy is very effective, and she's already been able to master using it while she sleeps."

Nurse Joy set down the bundled blanket holding the Cherubi next to Lyra.

"Cerasus, you'll be staying here tonight," Joy was addressing the small Cherry Pokémon. "You'll be using your Aromatherapy to help Lyra's burn. Understood?"

Cerasus nodded happily, snuggling up next to Lyra's burnt arm. Her leaves began to quiver and glow a gentle green, and a soothing scent began to waft through the room.

Nurse Joy smiled, patting the Cherubi gently on the head. "Good girl. I'll be back in the morning. Good night you two."

"Good night, ma'am," Lyra responded graciously while Silver inclined his head.

Lyra glanced at the clock on the wall. Ten. It had taken about a half-hour for Nurse Joy to redress and bandage Lyra's arms. But neither Lyra nor Silver had known it had been this late.

Lyra yawned, wincing slightly as she rubbed her eyes with one fist.

"Do you mind if I go to sleep now, Silver? I'm tired," she said through her yawn.

"No, go ahead," he mumbled, getting up to switch the light off before making his way over to the couch, which Nurse Joy had thoughtfully provided with a pillow and a blanket.

Lyra sighed, drifting off rather quickly, lured into a sweet, refreshing sleep by the relaxing scent of Aromatherapy given off by Cerasus nestled next to her arm.

Silver couldn't help but glance over at her from his sitting position at the couch. Her sleeping face was bathed in the soft green glow of the Cherubi's leaves. He remembered the feeling of her hand wrapped in his. For some alien reason, he desired that feeling again. So much so that it almost left him dizzy just thinking about it.

His mercury eyes stared at her illuminated face, free from the stresses of fear and pain while she slept. Even though her brown hair was a bit snarled from being out of its regular pigtails for a couple days, it draped across the sides of her face nicely. He found it hard to look away.

Something within him churned and swelled.

_She… she's actually really beautiful…_

If it hadn't been for the calm state the soothing Aromatherapy had put him in before he fell asleep, he would have been terrified.

**(~)**

**And the emotional plot thickens somewhat. And the readers rejoiced!  
I see Aromatherapy as being soothing, and can de-stress and lull others into a nightmare-free sleep when it's not being used in battle. Why a Cherubi? Eh, I wanted a small Pokemon that could curl up next to Lyra, and I didn't feel like using Chikorita. **

**Also, my interpretation of the move Outrage is based mostly off the anime, rather than the game. If anyone remembers the episode "Great Bowls of Fire" from the Johto arc, a Dragonite goes on an Outrage rampage, and it seemed more like an amped-up barrage of Hyper Beams with no rest in between, rather than a particular attack. So that's how I adapted it to this. I'd also imagine that controlling Outrage takes a lot of skill, experience, and authority, and any Youngster Joey trying to teach or use it would probably get hurt by their own rampaging Pokemon.**

**Aww, poor Silver. But it's about time he started experiencing more romantic turmoil. I mean, it'll be Chapter 20 and he hasn't even realized.  
...Holy crap. It's almost been 20 chapters... Dang... I LOVE YOU GUYS. :D**

**Cerasus the Cherubi wants you to review. Pwease? OuO**

**See ya! ~Meta-Akira  
**


	20. Burnt

**Hey! Akira here! With the *drum roll* twentieth chapter of Time's Design! *confetti*  
Alright, so maybe it's not that big of a deal, but I'm incredibly happy that things have gone as well as they have with this story! It's incredible that this story is going to be celebrating a year of publishing later on this month on the 24th. Holy. Freaking. Crud. 0.0  
I'll have another chapter up by then, I swear. And I really hope to hit 150 reviews by the end of this month.  
**

**Thanks to all my wonderful reviewers: Sapphiet, splitheart1120, Sparks101, doggiefan, TheKimikoGirl, MarlinMarlen, Kaiyojin Kobayashi, Spaztastic32, Emeraldshard, and Lucky Tigger!  
You guys are da best, and Cerasus the Cherubi really loved the avalanche of love for her written in your reviews. ^^**

**Here's a somewhat lengthy chapter for you guys! It has a bit of explanations to the games in it, and I hope you all enjoy it.**

**I do not own the characters of HG and SS.  
As always, read, enjoy, and review!**

**(~)  
**

_A quiet, calming repetition of waves was heard. It was almost like the soothing heartbeat of the earth. The water lapped up against the rocks, gurgling as it churned. He was in a cave. A cave that was more seawater than stone. He sat alone in the dark cavern. But he felt utterly at ease._

_It was peaceful. It was quiet._

_And he was content._

_Or at least, he was convinced that he was. He frowned slightly as he heard something that wasn't a rush of water flowing in and out of the sea cave. A whisper, almost like a breeze, in his ear._

_At once, he stood up, knowing he had to find the source of the whisper. He looked around, trying to find it. Nothing._

_Blinking in confusion, he jumped when he heard it again. He instinctively moved forwards, eager to hear the sound again._

_His legs moved almost automatically, and when he heard the soft sound whisper a little louder than before, he broke into a jog._

"_S...er."_

_He kept going, avoiding the navy pools of saltwater that surrounded his path._

"_Silver."_

_Someone was calling out to him. He had no idea why, but the sound motivated him into a run, wanting to find whoever was calling him. He rounded a corner, and saw light at the end. The exit of the cave._

"_Silver."_

_Without a second thought, he left the darkness of the cave, only to find himself on a beach illuminated by the moon. The sea stretched out in front of him, the crests of the waves almost glowing with pale moonbeams. He looked around, desperate to find the speaker.  
"There you are, Silver," her voice spoke again._

_His head whipped around to see her standing there, smiling at him. Her arms were whole and unbandaged. _

"_I was wondering where you were. There's something I want you to see," she chuckled, and he felt something in him leap._

_She slipped her hand into his and led him closer to the beach. At once, he realized that he had been wrong before. The calm contentment he'd felt earlier when he was alone in the cave had been terribly flawed, though he hadn't known it at the time. It was nothing compared to the sudden happiness and tranquility he felt surging through him now, as they together watched an enormous, magnificent shape gracefully dive in and out of the ocean- flying as much as swimming- its cry sounding like a song._

o0O0o0O0o

Silver jolted awake as though he'd been struck by his Magneton's shock. His breath came a bit rapidly, and his heart was beating quickly.

He put a hand to his head, trying to feel it for a temperature. Nothing out of the ordinary. He shook his head firmly, his red locks swinging from side to side as he tried to make sense of his dream.

_What the hell?_

Deep in bewildered thought, he remembered how in his dream, Lyra had taken his hand. His face reddened considerably when he was reminded of how she had done the same thing last night while her arms had been treated. And he couldn't help but focus on how aware he had been about how her hand felt in his.

_Augh! Stop it, you moron!_

He gritted his teeth and ran a hand through his hair, trying to bring himself back down to earth. Ugh, at least it hadn't gotten worse than that…

Oh, wait. His eyes widened as he faintly recalled how he had gawked at her and what his last thoughts had been before he'd fallen asleep. He blushed even deeper and his face felt warm.

_Oh… Oh crap… Damn, what… Dammit, what's wrong with me? Aw, hell… I-I couldn't… I'm not… Good God no. Just… just no. No freaking way. I just… need to… need to get a grip. GET A GRIP!_

He took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves and reign in his rampaging emotions.

_Get a grip, get a grip. I was just… um… tired. Worried and tired… Yeah…_

Not thoroughly convinced, but enough to function properly once more, he swung his feet over the side of the couch. His mercury eyes were unwillingly drawn to Lyra's bed.

He froze.

It was empty.

He stood up abruptly, mind set on fast forward.

"She's gone! Where-? How-? When-?" He kept interrupting his own questions with new ones.

"Cher? Che ru…bi?"

He stopped his paranoid outburst and saw the baby Cherubi. She was still snuggled up in the blankets, and she blinked at him with her small, black eyes. Apparently, the little creature had just been woken up by Silver.

"You… uh… Sara? No… Ceri, erm… Cerasus? Yeah, that was it. Cerasus," he said firmly to the petite Grass-Type. She blinked and smiled in response to her name.

"You know where Lyra is?" he tried to ask calmly, suppressing the feeling of stupidity for asking the juvenile Cherubi such things.

Cerasus wiggled her leaves and nodded happily. She bounced off the bed and ran out the door that had been left ajar.

"Well, wait for me to get changed first, geez," he mumbled, calming down a bit.

He changed out of his rumpled clothes and into a clean set, haphazardly shoving the clothes into his bag before leaving the room to find that Cherubi. As he pulled on his shoes, he realized that the pain he'd been feeling in his ankle had reduced drastically since last night.

Curious, he undid the elastic wrap and saw that his ankle's swelling had gone down a lot, though the bruises remained.

"Wonder if it was that cherry's Aromatherapy that helped it," he muttered, abandoning the wrap and tugging his sock and shoe back on before quickly snatching up his bag and leaving the room behind.

Only to nearly run right into the girl he was looking for.

"Ah, Silver, you're up!"

Lyra was standing in front of him, hair brushed and clean, and wearing her regular clothes for the first time in days. Her arms were still bandaged, but she seemed to be much more energetic and in much less pain than last night. Cerasus was situated comfortably on her shoulder, pleased at being able to find the girl so easily. Her bag was slung over the other shoulder. Absol stood dutifully behind her, looking much a like a bodyguard, though appearing very bored and uninterested.

"Where have you been? _And why are you out of bed?_" he asked, his second question sounding almost like a demand.

Lyra chuckled a bit.

"Cerasus. Her Aromatherapy worked wonders on my arms. The pain's gone down a lot, and Nurse Joy said I was fit enough to get up and move around without feeling too dizzy or fatigued. She told me that I was free to go today," she explained happily. "And as for where I've been, well, it's Sunday today. Needed to go."

Silver blinked before he put it together. Oh, right. Sundays. He shifted uncomfortably.

"You-you could've skipped today," he said awkwardly. "I don't think you would have been punished for looking after yourself after everything that's happened."

Lyra shrugged. "I was feeling much better, so why not? Besides, I have a lot to express thanks for this week."

A week. It had been a week since he'd met up with her in Azalea. A week since his crazy time-traveling freak journey. He frowned sourly. The week hadn't seemed all that great, in his blunt opinion. Why had she been so keen on it?

"What exactly happened this week that you feel thankful for?" he asked with a slight sneer.

Lyra was silenced for a few moments. But only a few, because she piped up with an answer.

"Well, I met up with you, didn't I? And we started traveling together. That by itself would be something to appreciate, wouldn't it?"

He was caught off guard by her answer and the sincerity in her face when she said it. His face felt a little warm again, and to hide it, he looked at the floor.

"Y-you-"

"But that's not all," she said, cutting of the beginning of his flustered attempt at a sentence. She sounded a bit more solemn. "If you hadn't been around back at Ice Path, I don't think I would have gotten off as well as I did. To be honest… I don't think I would have gotten off at all."

Silver looked back at her again, speechless. She grinned a little, weak, but genuine.

"So I'm very grateful that we met by chance in Azalea. Because I don't think it was chance," she said softly.

Silver was trying rather hard to keep his heartbeat under control. Anything, anything… How about a change of subject? Yeah, that would work… hopefully.

"Ngh, whatever. We need to plan out what to do next," he muttered, casting his eyes off to the side, trying to bore a hole through the wall to keep from losing his grip. It was getting harder to do so.

"Plan?" she asked, a bit blankly.

"The Legendaries," he hissed, gesturing at the door behind him. "We need to figure out where this RP organization is going to strike next!"

"Oh," realization dawned over her face. "Right."

Half an hour later, Lyra had checked out of the hospital, was given instructions on how to look after her injuries, and what limitations she had.

"You're allowed _gentle_ movement of your arms, and no more," Nurse Joy had said kindly but sternly. "You'll need to release your Pokémon the more mundane way by pressing the button rather than throwing the Pokeballs. And no capturing either, I'm afraid. The Aromatherapy has helped with the burns and swellings, but your injuries still have yet to seal up completely. Aggravating them will only reopen them prematurely, and that could lead to blood loss and scarring."

After making sure that Lyra understood the instructions, she gave her a package containing a few rolls of gauze and tubes for both the bite wounds and any lingering burns that Aromatherapy may have left behind and allowed the girl to go on her way with the impatient redhead.

The two left the center to meet up once more with Absol and Silver's Gengar, who had made his first real appearance in a couple days. His mischievous grin looked a bit tired.

"Silver, Gengar looks exhausted," she noted with some concern.

"He just needs some rest," Silver responded with a shrug and crossed his arms. "He's been patrolling after all."

"For several days straight?" Lyra looked amazed and a little incredulous.

"Yeah. Didn't even cause any ruckus over practical jokes or anything. He must've taken my orders seriously for once," he said, glancing over at his Gengar, who was now taking pleasure in mocking his master by mimicking his pose and facial expression. "He hardly takes anything seriously."

Gengar responded by sticking out his absurdly large tongue and licking Silver square in the face with it.

"AUGH! STUPID MORONIC GHOST!"

Silver rubbed his face vigorously with his jacket sleeve, trying to get rid of any disgusting residue as well as the paralyzing tingly feeling.

Lyra laughed brightly and loudly at the ghost's antics. Silver paused in his efforts to get that nasty feeling off when he heard it. It was the first time she had outright laughed instead of a small, suppressed giggle or chuckle since this whole fiasco had happened. He glanced at Gengar, who looked tremendously pleased at the outcome of his efforts.

"I'm very thankful for watching out for me, Gengar," Lyra said, still laughing. She hugged the ghost-type gingerly, but fondly.

Gengar laughed in return as she let go and grabbed one of her capsules to let Fang out. While she was distracted, Silver approached his tired but happy Pokémon.

"Um… Th-thanks. For… ahem… for all your hard work, y'know," he muttered, trying not to look _too_ grateful. "And… well… for cheering her up and all. She… she deserves it."

Gengar gave him a sly, knowing grin. It flustered and irritated Silver even more.

"Wh-what's _that_ look for, you idiot?"

Gengar merely burst into laughter, pointing gleefully at Silver's flushed face and drawing the attention of Lyra and her Faraligatr. Well aware that the both of them were staring at him, he drew out Gengar's empty pokeball.

"Just shut up and get in there," he snarled, red-faced. Gengar saluted him with a chuckle as he was pulled back into the capsule to rest.

He stormed past a confused Lyra, and she only managed to catch a couple muttered phrases of "moronic phantom" and "don't know _what_ he's implying".

So she decided to meekly follow after without asking questions, Fang at her side and Absol trotting dutifully after.

Their brisk walk came to a halt at the northern end of the island, when they'd left the outskirts of the small port town behind them. Nothing much was ahead except for a humble cottage, a ledge, and stone cliffs. Other than that, just sand and sea.

Lyra sighed deeply, breathing in the salty breeze.

"Feels nice to be out in the fresh air," she said, carefully stretching her arms. Silver nodded in agreement, not having left the building since he'd first arrived after his panicked order to his Alakazam to Teleport them to a safer place.

"Absol," he addressed the mysterious white Pokémon. The creature acknowledged him with an impassive look. "Is it possible for you to, I dunno, scope out the area or anything? Make sure it's all clear so we can talk?"

Absol blinked with a deadpan expression. No motion of compliance came. He didn't need to 'scope out' anything. If unpleasant presences were about, he'd sense them.

"Okaaay, fine," Silver said, irked, before whirling around to see Lyra walking up an incline to a slightly raised bit of ground surrounded by ledges. "Hey! What do you think you're doing? I don't think hanging around a bunch of ledges is a smart thing to do when you've got arm issues."

"It's alright," she responded swiftly in her defense. "This place is safe. And it has a bit of special meaning for me."

"The heck is that supposed to mean?" he shot back at her, still uneasy about her being so close to those ledges. Sure, the both of them could hop down from them on an average day, but they were a good six feet tall and had loose gravel around them that could easily ensure a slip.

"Just come over here and I'll explain," she said patiently, sitting calmly on the raised area with Fang curling up next to her. Absol ambled over without waiting for the guy to follow.

Silver sighed. If Absol couldn't sense her falling or anything, he supposed it was alright for the time being.

With a huff, he sat down on Lyra's other side, glancing at her for explanation.

"This is one of the spots where I'd met Suicune," she said, with a content expression on her face.

"Suicune," he echoed. It sounded so familiar… Why…?

"Yeah. One of the Legendary Beasts from the Burned Tower," she added with a nod.

_Oh yeah… Ecruteak… _

(~(~(_Flashback_)~)~)

He felt kind of like a coward. He really did. And then he hated himself for feeling like that.

He remembered walking into this burnt dump of a place.

"Hmph, this used to be a great tower made out of tin or something?" he had murmured to no one, utterly unimpressed with the state of things. He critically examined the burnt, but whole, boards that made up what was left of the floor and the singed statues that presumably had been in the shape of Pokémon before the fire had melted them beyond recognition. "You'd think the people of this town would take better care of their landmarks."

He kicked at the loose debris with one foot, casting his gaze upwards at the not-so-structurally sound ceiling that had mostly burned up or fallen through. Some patches of sky were visible through the blackened wreckage.

For a brief moment, he felt a bit solemn, a rare fragment of grim reverence for the place that had suffered such a terrible event. It was a strange feeling for him to feel as he wandered around the ravaged building, reaching a gaping hole in the center of the scorched floor and looking down into the blackened stone basement…

"HOLY SHIT!"

He immediately clapped a hand over his mouth as his involuntary exclamation echoed through the charred wreck of a building, his heart racing.

His mercury eyes were gazing down widely in shock at three large, colorful Pokémon- sky blue, bright yellow, and reddish brown. Each seemed to have an almost ethereal mane or cape of some sort that resembled mist or smoke. The three looked as though they had been resting. _Had been._ Past tense.

Now three pairs of sharp red eyes had snapped open and swerved up to lock onto his own, drawn by his shout.

He swallowed shakily. One of the creatures, the yellow one covered with black stripes, had a vicious set of extended canines that certainly looked lethal. The others looked similarly intimidating as well. The reddish brown one with brilliant red and yellow facial crests opened his mouth to reveal a set of sharp teeth. Not as noticeable as the yellow one's, but still incredibly impressive and frightening. The creature lifted back its magnificent shaggy head and let out a tremendous roar that seemed to shake the unstable building to whatever was left of its foundation. It sounded so feral, raw, and powerful.

That was Silver's cue to get the hell out of there. However, these creatures, even the blue one which seemed to be calmer than the other two, exuded an aura of utmost power. Despite his instincts telling him to run and his eardrums shuddering in pain, he remained rooted in place, staring at the three beasts below. Finally, as the tremendous roar finally started to fade, he snapped out of it and ducked behind a pile of rubble. He peered around it to continue watching the creatures, the reddish one seemed to have calmed after he had gotten out of their line of sight.

He sat for a few minutes in silence, trying to calm his rapid heartbeat and wiping his sweaty palms off on his jacket.

_Good God. What the hell are those things?_

He would have rummaged around in his bag for that book of Johto and Kanto Pokémon, but the last thing he wanted to do was make a noise and draw attention to himself again. So he stayed there for what felt like an hour. Thus his position and loathing himself for feeling like a coward.

Until, to his alarm and confusion, he heard a couple sets of footsteps approaching rapidly.

"It came from here! I'm sure of it," one excited voice said in a stage whisper that easily carried to Silver's hiding spot.

"Why did you insist on bursting in right before my gym battle and drag me here without explanation?" another, calmer voice asked in slight exasperation.

"Morty, you must have heard that earth-shattering roar earlier," the first voice said, sounding a bit annoyed and impatient, as if Morty didn't get the picture. "You couldn't be so immersed in the spirit world that you missed it."

"Alright. I do admit that I heard something. But, Eusine, could it have waited until after my battle? I mean, you can't go chasing after every roar you hear and expect it to be from the Trio."

_Trio?_ Silver was quite confused. And a bit worried about the noise level they were making. Wouldn't it cause those beasts to act up again? Well, maybe it had been because he'd woken those beasts up. Oops.

"I have veritable _proof_ this time, Morty," the one who was obviously Eusine insisted eagerly. "I was in the Center at the time and _mere moments_ after the roar faded away, a news bulletin came up on the tv there saying that the volcano on Cinnabar began to show signs of eruption! That means that Entei could be nearby. You know the legend that if he roars, a volcano erupts! And if Entei is around, then maybe Suicune-"

Silver froze. Cinnabar Island. Cinnabar… Cinnabar… That was where…

"Let me get this straight," Morty now sounded a bit angry. "The people of Cinnabar Island are in trouble, and what occupies your mind right now is the possibility that Suicune is in the immediate vicinity? I think you really need to get your priorities straight, Eusine."

"No, no, not at all!" Eusine quickly defended, sounding a bit apologetic. "The news bulletin said that the population was swiftly evacuating, since they have a plan for such a circumstance! I did not mean to sound so flippant about it."

"Hm," Morty sounded a bit pacified by the answer, but still a bit disapproving. "Well, I have a battle to get back to, so let's make this quick."

"Right, right."

Silver took this chance to glance at the two. He recognized the profile of Morty, the gym leader. He'd defeated the man just yesterday. But he had no idea who this Eusine character was. He was dressed ridiculously. Who wears a purple tux and a cape as a part of their everyday apparel? It was impractical and stupid.

"Morty! Arceus, look!"

"I see," Morty responded, no longer sounding annoyed and disapproving, but his soft, distant voice was filled with awe.

"I can't believe it! Not just Suicune and Entei, but Raikou as well! The entire Trio gathered together in the place where they were born!"

For a few minutes, Silver could hear nothing but excited whispers from Eusine that he could not make out. Until just a little while later when he heard another set of footsteps make their way into the ruined tower.

"Who's this?" Eusine muttered.

"Oh, Lyra. Hello," Morty greeted kindly. "Please accept my apologies for having our battle interrupted before we even got a chance to begin. But my friend Eusine here is on the trail of the Legendary Pokémon Suicune, and as you can see, we seem to have found her along with her brethren."

_Lyra? Legendary Pokémon? _

Silver blanched from his hiding spot. He quietly got up from his spot and stealthily skirted his way around the edges of the hole, keeping to the shadows. He wouldn't be caught dead by that girl hiding like a wimp behind a bunch of debris.

He made his way around towards a rickety-looking ladder. He briefly contemplated going down, but paused to rethink it after remembering that devastating roar.

"Hey, Silver!"

_Dang. She saw me._

He put on a disdainful face as he turned to look at her, her strong Croconaw by her side.

"Oh, it's you," he said sullenly. "What are you doing here? Come to capture some Legendary Pokémon to try to make yourself appear stronger?" he said with a hint of anger in his voice. Of course, she would show him up by catching a Legendary. It would make it even harder for him to defeat her.

"No, I-"

"Hah! Don't waste your time!" he snapped at her. "As if a person like _you_ could catch a Legendary Pokémon! Only someone strong could hope to catch them. You're not strong. You're not destined to be great!" He was starting to go off onto a tirade. She wasn't even the source of his anger. No, there was something else that was severely bothering him, but she just happened to be here so he was going to let off some steam. He picked a pokeball off his belt. "Why don't you just stick to defeating weakling Rocket grunts?"

One rather swift battle came and went, and the results were the same as last time. She had come out the victor, and now the bitterness inside of him was doubled. Even with the addition of Magnemite, she and her Nidorino, Pitfall, and his move Dig quickly brought an end to the dual Electric/Steel Pokémon.

"Damn," he hissed, returning his fallen Pokémon. "Whatever. It's not like you could defeat, let alone catch any of those things anyways. So I don't care."

"Silver," she started, making a move to grab his sleeve.

He snatched his arm away, his rage simmering as he shouted, "What the hell do you want? You won, didn't you?"

"But something's bothering you. Something besides a battle," she said with some concern. Her worry caught him off guard. So he did his usual reaction to something that caught him off guard: he lashed out.

"What the hell do _you_ care? It's none of your damn business!" He snarled at her. She winced at his sharp, angry tone.

"Okay," she said quietly. "Sorry for butting in."

With that, she turned and reached for the rickety ladder.

"Whoa, whoa, _whoa._ What are you doing?" Silver asked incredulously.

"Going down to see those Pokémon," she responded blankly.

"You're kidding. Those things would tear through you like wet toilet paper," he deadpanned, glaring at her.

"But…" her face was rather confused. "I thought you said you didn't care."

His glare became even fiercer as he turned on his heel and strode away. "I DON'T!"

He exited the ruined tower and quickly made his way over to the Pokémon Center to see the news, wondering why he had tried to stop his rival from descending that ladder, and why he was feeling so, so, _so_ damn guilty about being the catalyst of the eruption on Cinnabar When he got to the Center, his legs gave out as he reached a couch as his eyes stared at news footage of his hometown slowly being covered by lava.

"-volcano, having been dormant for almost a hundred years, unexpectedly started spewing gases and debris only two hours ago. The small population of Cinnabar evacuated immediately, and reports say that everyone got off the island safely about ten minutes before the eruption began. Gym Leader Blaine oversaw the evacuation and is currently-"

_This wasn't my fault… was it?_

(~(~(_End Flashback_)~)~)

"Hey, Silver, you alright?" Lyra asked, snapping him out of his stupor. He hadn't realized that he'd been glaring out at the ocean for the past ten minutes.

"Oh. Yeah. I remember Suicune now," he said quietly.

"Well, I met Suicune here. She saw something in me, according to Eusine. And I encountered her several times through my journey. And I finally encountered her on the Cerulean Cape, and she allowed me to catch her."

"Wait… You _caught_ Suicune?" Silver asked, stunned.

"Yeah. But I couldn't keep her on my team, so I trusted Misty, the Cerulean Gym Leader, to take care of her for me. Since Suicune likes Cerulean Cape, with all the water and everything," she said. "And Bill, the guy who made the PC storage system, was happy since he could see such a rare Pokémon."

"Did you let Eusine know where Suicune was?" Silver asked her wryly.

She chuckled nervously. "Eheheh, no, I didn't. I was sure if I did, he'd never leave Misty alone about how he would be better suited to taking care of Suicune. And if he pestered her too much, I think she might end up beating him up. In the interest of everyone's health and sanity, no."

Silver snorted in derision. He'd never met Eusine face-to-face, but from what he'd seen and heard about him, his opinion of the man in the purple tux and cape wasn't high.

As he thought about it though, he frowned again. Cerulean City. According to his future self, it was suspected that RP went after something in Cerulean Cave. He'd never been in there. But was it possible that they were after Suicune?

"So… Back to the subject we were originally supposed to talk about," he said seriously. "I heard those jerks mutter something about Cerulean before they hightailed it out of Ice Path."

Okay, it was a minor lie. So he'd heard it from his future time counterpart during a time-travel experience with Celebi. But Lyra had been delirious in Ice Path, so who could accuse him?

She looked at him, wide-eyed.

"I don't know how they could know about Suicune!" she said fearfully. "I gave her to Misty way before I first encountered them! It had to be two or three months before all this started. So about five months ago."

He clenched his teeth, and swiftly tried to reassure her. He couldn't stand seeing her look so afraid.

"Stop worrying so much. It clogs your ability to think," he said through gritted teeth. He hated seeing her scared. "I don't think it's Suicune they're targeting. I mean, since you defeated her no problem and all. I think they're going for something more powerful, something that would give you more trouble. Probably Psychic, like those Alakazam. Do you know of any Pokémon like that around Cerulean?"

Lyra placed a hand on her chin, thinking.

"I've never met any, but supposedly, there's something in Cerulean Cave. I was actually planning to go there soon. It's restricted so that anyone who hasn't defeated Blue, the Viridian Gym Leader, can't gain access," she finally said. "It's possible that there could be a powerful Legendary living in there."

Silver nodded absently, her assumptions lining up with the ones he'd heard from his future self. He stood up decisively.

"Well, it's decided then," he stated.

He held out a hand to Lyra to help her up. As she placed his hand in his, he felt that odd sense in him again. That dizzy, almost giddy feeling that churned inside of him. She smiled at him in gratitude for the thoughtful gesture, and the feeling only spiked in his chest.

Even as he'd let go and she had begun to walk down the pathway back to level ground, her Feraligatr following closely behind, he stood in a daze, trying to sort out what was going though him. It took Absol whacking his calf with the blunt edge of his scythe to get him to move, albeit almost robotically, and follow after her.

He mind was jammed at the moment. The world must have gone insane or something. Things weren't behaving the way they were supposed to. Logic was thrown right out the metaphorical window. The sky might as well have been bright, neon pink and Swinub might as well have been soaring across it. Rocks might as well have turned into green jello.

Because for the briefest, tiniest _fraction_ of a nanosecond, Silver had possibly considered thinking about feeling like wanting to maybe kiss her.

What the _hell_ was happening?

**(~)**

**Heh. Threw a bone to those who wanted me to get a move on in the subject of Silver's feelings. Things are gonna really start up for him now. **

**Because I wing most of my chapters, this one _really_ surprised me. I had no intention of putting in a dream, but I found myself typing the words when I was starting this chapter. Wasn't any plan to put in a flashback, but voila! No idea that Silver waking a sleeping Entei would cause him to roar, which triggered the eruption on Cinnabar, but there you have it. Didn't know that Silver would want to kiss Lyra, but presto! I'm sure this story (and this chapter in particular) has a mind of its own. I'm just the channeler of the words or something. XD**

**Poor Silver. He's gonna be a bit of a wreck next chapter, but whatcha gonna do? Personally, I'm looking forward to it. Does that make me a sadistic author?  
Meh, who knows.**

**Hope you enjoyed it, even if it does seem kind of jumbled. **

**See ya! ~Meta-Akira  
**


	21. Train

**HI GUYS! Akira here once more.**

**Three guesses on what today is (and the first two don't count)! That's right! Today, the twenty-fourth of August, is the One Year Anniversary of this story being published! 8D  
HUZZAH!**

**I have a lot to thank from you guys. Your reviews, support, and occasional fanart, helped me even in my art-blocked times, and kept me writing with fervor! I hope you've enjoyed this past year! I certainly have! I especially thank those of you who've stuck with me from the start and reviewed so many times! I love you guys!  
As a heads-up: in celebration of the anniversary, I will be putting up my story on DA (and about time!).  
IN ADDITION! I will probably be whipping up a bunch of art to go with the story! One of the ideas I'm keen on drawing is Future!Silver and Future!Fang. My username on DA is the same as it is here: Meta-Akira.**

**Hope you check it out!**

**Thanks to my wonderful reviewers from the last chapter: MyuuMay, MarHeavenAngel, Kaiyojin Kobayashi, LuckyTigger, XJessicaLeighX18, doggiefan, splitheart1120, Sparks101, Gaaraxluvr (_twice_), TheGreatProphet283, AwesomeWolfLover, MarlinMarlen, xStartaRIOTx, and Spaztastic32!  
You guys are awesome!**

**As thanks, here's a nice chapter (a bit short, compared to the last few, sorry!) that has some fluffy moments. **

**After a year, I still don't own the characters of HG and SS.  
**

**After a year, I think you get the drill. Read, enjoy, and review!**

**(~)  
**

Silver's mind was preoccupied. And that was putting things lightly. He'd nearly walked right into a sign as he followed Lyra towards the coast.

He didn't even currently possess the coherence to swear at and/or kick it. Had he been a bit more aware, he probably would have noticed Lyra's blatant concerned look that came his way. Though, the way he was feeling right now, it was probably best if he hadn't. It probably would make him act _more_ irrational and bewildered than he already was.

The only things that were going though his mind at the moment was the craziness that had just taken place to the north of Cianwood. How when he had helped Lyra to her feet, his hand had lingered on hers, and he'd been filled with confusing feelings. And the completely crazy, unacceptable, half-baked notion (he refused to even call it an urge or want) of kissing Lyra.

He inwardly shuddered. Him. Kissing Lyra. It was… madness. What had driven him to that?

Lack of sleep? No, he'd gotten the most refreshing night's sleep he'd had in a long time, courtesy of that Cherubi's Aromatherapy.

Stress? Perhaps… Though he wasn't quite sure if that was it. Previous instances of him feeling stressed on this journey hadn't resulted in him thinking about kissing his rival. Feeling protective, yes. Wanting to ensure her safety, yes. _Despising_ the fear and sadness in her eyes more than anything and wanting nothing more than to see her happy and smiling again… yes.

Of course, that was all just friendly concern. Any halfway decent friend would feel those things.

…Right?

So… maybe it was something like a mild case of heat stroke. I mean, he was feeling dizzy, experiencing delusions, his heart rate was much faster than average, and his face was really warm.

Yeah. It was probably heat stroke. It _had_ to be heat stroke. _Oh please let it be heat stroke._

All the while, he was staring at the ground directly in front of him, yet not really seeing any of it. He only came to a stop when he slammed into Lyra, sending the poor girl sprawling into the sand.

At least he was finally dragged out of his muddled denial and back into reality. But it still took a moment for him to register why she was on the ground.

"Ah… uh… s-sorry," he muttered as she winced from landing on her bruised arms. Thankfully, the sand cushioned her fall.

He offered her a hand for the second time, trying to ignore the swell of emotions that rose in him again. He let go of her hand extremely quickly, attempting to suppress the baffling but strangely exhilarating feelings.

_Heat stroke. It's heat stroke. Ignore it. It-it will go away. It's only a temporary thing._

He knew somewhere in his confused mind that it was not heat stroke and it certainly would not go away. But he felt like if he kept saying things like this to himself, that somehow it would reverse the irreversible and somehow keep things how they had been- familiar, not unknown.

He sighed in aggravation, but froze when he noticed Lyra's eyes set on him with concern.

"I-I was just thinking about the trip ahead," he said loudly to try to cover up why he had been spacing out completely. It messed with his head even more when she stared at him like that. Well, if she stared at him at all, actually. "And I think that to save on a lot of time, we should see if Alakazam could use Teleport again to get us to the Goldenrod."

Lyra's worried expression lightened up considerably and was replaced by a puzzled expression.

"Goldenrod, why Goldenrod?"

"B-because it's got the Magnet Train to Saffron, which is only a city over from Cerulean," he explained, staring at the sandy ground. "And that way I know Alakazam will be alright. He's not used to Teleporting, so this way he won't have to go such a long distance…"

Lyra stared at him until she grinned.

"What are you looking like that for?" he asked, crossing his arms.

"Because of you," she said, poking him in the side, smiling.

"Hah…" Silver's face flushed quite a bit at that unexpected response, unsure of what to do or say. "Wh-wha…" Finally, he managed to control his voice. "What the heck d'ya mean _me?_"

"You're just thinking of your Alakazam and being considerate to make sure he doesn't overwork himself," she said with a shrug. She turned to look at the ocean with soft eyes, hiding her face from him as it turned pink. "I hope you don't get mad at me for saying this, but I think it's really sweet."

_Damn heatstroke!_

Silver struggled with both his mind and his words for a little while. He was expecting himself to irately blurt out that he was not sweet, soft-hearted, or any of that mushy crap.

"Why would you think I'd get mad at you for that?" …was what calmly came out instead. Well, that was unexpected.

Her shoulders rose and fell as she returned Fang to his ball. "You don't seem to like being called things like that, I suppose. So I thought you might get mad."

"I can't get mad at you for that," he muttered before his eyes snapped wide open and he desperately tried to rearrange what he'd said. "I mean, for something as trivial as that! It'd be a waste of energy to get mad about it."

Lyra chuckled. "Yeah, I suppose so."

Silver hesitated before continuing in a quiet voice. "But if you think I'm sweet or a nice, considerate guy, you definitely got me mixed up with someone else. I'm not… I'm not able to be that kind of a person."

As he let out Alakazam to explain the plan to the Psi Pokémon, he could have sworn that Lyra has whispered something, but it was snatched away by the sea breeze.

"Did you say something?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at her. She suddenly looked a bit self-conscious and shook her head, chuckling.

"No, it was nothing," she insisted, Absol being the only one to have heard her whisper.

He looked at her for a few moments before deciding it wasn't worth it and returning his attention to Alakazam. The highly intelligent Pokémon nodded and focused, again trying to recall the technique. It took a few moments, but Alakazam got it much quicker than last time. With a shimmering blue glow, the four- Lyra, Silver, and the two Pokémon- faded from the banks of Cianwood. And the words Lyra had spoken faded on the breeze.

"_Yes you are, Silver. You're that kind of a person to me."_

o0O0o0O0o

Few people batted an eye when Alakazam had Teleported three other individuals into the midst of Goldenrod City. And those that did quickly got over their brief shock and went on their way. I suppose that with wild Abra nearby, it wasn't too uncommon an occurrence. And in such a large, busy city, it was probably an excellent way of time-saving transportation.

After several days of hearing little more than distant horns of ships and the constant lapping of waves, the sudden bustle of people and rush of automobiles took a little adjusting to. But neither paid much attention to the noise and instead were adjusting to the strange feelings that Teleport had left them with. It was obvious to Silver that Lyra hadn't had a whole lot of experience with the psychic method either.

After regaining their bearings, and Silver returning Alakazam, they were quickly off towards the Magnet Train Station that would take them to Saffron in an hour and a half, tops. It beat any other mode of transport- barring Teleportation of course, but Silver didn't want to tire Alakazam out with that if he had such little experience with it. For all he knew, something could go wrong, ending up in a wrong location or getting separated from somebody. He was still wary of it.

Silver finally saw the Radio Tower not too far ahead of them and grimaced at some bad memories. Those friggin' Rockets. He'd regretted leaving Lyra to take on the building by herself. Just because he was sulking at losing again. But a half-hour after leaving, he'd returned to the tower. In retrospect, he realized that he'd been worried.

He shoved the thoughts and memories out of his head. Now wasn't the time to focus on them. They quickly made their way into the station for the Magnet Train, heading past rows of chairs, mostly deserted, with a handful of people reading newspapers with dull expressions, briefcases near their feet.

Lyra stopped at front of the building, smiling at a woman seated in a booth behind plexiglass. The woman looked up and returned the smile, though it was more for professional appearance.

"Welcome to the Magnet Train Station, fastest transport on the continent. What can I do for you today?" She asked.

"We'd like to get on the train leaving at…" Lyra glanced at the large, digital board of departure and arrival listings. "Ten oh-five, please."

"Alright, and if I could just see your pass," the woman responded.

Lyra pulled out the slim plastic card and slipped it through the slot in the plexiglass. The woman slid it through a machine that blipped and nodded, returning the pass.

"The both of you are covered for the trip. You'll be in Train B, and I believe it will be leaving in about ten minutes."

"Thank you," Lyra smiled and the two left, Absol trailing behind them. They passed the security guard, who insisted that the Disaster Pokémon be recalled into his pokeball.

"What, no Pokémon are allowed to be out on the train?" Silver asked, crossing his arms.

"Well, usually if it's a very small Pokémon, I might let it slide. But Absol is a bit large and can be known to be powerful. And with it being known as the Disaster Pokémon and all, I'll have to go with protocol and ask you to return it," the guard explained.

"But you see, he's not-" Lyra began.

"He can't stand being in a Pokeball," Silver cut her off. "He's mine, and if I try to recall him into a Pokeball, he'll just break loose again right away."

The guard looked a bit skeptical, so Silver pulled a pokeball out of his bag and held it out towards Absol. Immediately, the white Pokémon's eyes flash and he swung his head, smacking the capsule out of Silver's hand and sending it rolling onto the floor with a clatter, adorned with a new scratch in its paint. Silver snatched the ball up and stowed it away again in his bag.

The guard looked between the redhead and Absol before finally sighing.

"Alright. I'll let it go this time. But keep a sharp eye on him to make sure he doesn't cause any trouble on the train," he said sternly to the two teenagers.

"Yes, sir," Lyra piped up before the man let them through.

They went through the doorway that lead to the platform. They saw a few sleek, white noses of the trains lined up on separate sets of special tracks. They hurried towards the platform through the sparse crowd towards one with the letter B painted boldly in black next to the tinted windshield.

They boarded and arrived in their seats, Silver sitting next to the window and Absol sitting at their feet.

"Silver, why did you tell that guard that Absol was yours?"

"Psh, I doubt he'd've let us on with a wild Pokémon, don't you?"

"True… But that Pokeball. Was it empty?"

"Nope," he said, digging out the capsule again and examining the scratch. "Sneasel's."

Absol shot him a disdainful look, which he ignored.

Lyra giggled lightly at Absol's reaction and extended a hand to stroke the silky white fur on his head.

"Doesn't look like he's keen to be caught," she remarked.

As the train gently lurched forwards, leaving the station behind and smoothly, steadily accelerated towards its top speed of 340 miles per hour, Silver's mind pondered the idea.

_He wouldn't make a bad teammate. He seems to be pretty strong, and isn't a troublemaker like a certain moronic ghost I know._

_I wonder… Could I catch him?_

Only a few minutes later, he took his eyes off the green blurs that were trees, and noticed Lyra's head bobbing, and her eyes heavy.

"Sorry," she yawned. "Whenever I'm on a train, I feel so comfortable that I get a bit sleepy," she murmured.

Silver quickly glanced back outside, trying to avoid the word 'cute' in his head.

"It's a little more than an hour-long ride," he said, clearing his throat. "Go ahead and sleep. I'll wake you when we get close to Saffron."

She nodded, her eyelids drifting shut.

It wasn't until about fifteen minutes into the ride when her head started to droop to the side and came to rest on his left shoulder.

He jumped, started, and nearly panicked. He caught himself just as he was about to (loudly, no doubt) protest. She was still asleep, and though he wanted to squirm away, something held him there, stock-still. He didn't want to wake her.

Clenching his fists as he felt tingles course through his shoulder, he didn't dare move. Though he felt warmth settle in his cheeks when she sighed contentedly. His shoulder would probably be a bit numb once they got to Saffron, but for now, he would allow her to use it as her pillow.

As to why, though, he had no idea.

The rest of the ride seemed to fly by as quickly as the landscape. He began to recognize Mount Moon in the distance and turned his head to look at his napping rival.

Her hat was a bit askew and her face looked peaceful. Silver grimaced again, and shifted his shoulder, nudging her awake.

"Mmm... nwah?"

"Wake up," Silver said, avoiding looking at her face for what felt like the umpteenth time today. "We're almost there."

Lyra's eyes fluttered open before refocusing. It took her a few groggy seconds to realize her head was on his shoulder.

"O-oh!" she jumped, quickly sitting up, looking embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I didn't know… um…"

"I-it's alright," Silver said, determinedly staring out the window as the train began to slow. It would still take ten minutes to come to a stop at the Saffron station. He shifted uncomfortably. "I… I didn't mind. I didn't want to wake you up so… It's fine."

Lyra blushed a bit. "Um. Thank you."

Silver responded in a vague hybrid of a cough, a grunt, and a sound of affirmation.

The awkward silence that spiraled through made both of them a bit eager for the train to stop.

Absol, meanwhile, rolled his eyes, unbeknownst to the humans.

o0O0o0O0o

Leaving the station behind, the pair of them, plus one Absol, started to make their way to the north end of town in the direction of Cerulean City. It wouldn't take too long of a walk to get there, since they were located so close to each other.

It only took about a half-hour to escape the city limits of Saffron and get onto Route 5 in earnest.

"Give me your Pokegear," Silver stated. "I want to check how far we'll need to walk."

Lyra acquiesced and dug her device from her bag, handing it to her traveling partner.

Silver noted that it was warm as he flipped it open, as if it had been just used. He scowled at it, knowing it hadn't been in use.

"Lyra, I think your idiotic Pokegear is overheating," he complained, scrolling through the features until he got to the GPS. "It might need to be replaced or something."

Lyra sighed as they walked through the calm, grassy route. "And I just got a new one with my Champion money, too. Oh well. It'll have to wait."

He nodded absent-mindedly, looking down at the device. "Hn, shouldn't take us too long to get to Cerulean. Probably another couple of hours."

"Right," she replied, taking back her Pokegear and stowing it back in her bag.

Silver couldn't miss the note of nervousness in her voice. And he'd be lying if he said he wasn't a bit on edge about this, either. But Cerulean City lay ahead of them, and beyond that, Cerulean Cave and the source of their problems- RP.

**(~)**

**See? See? Fluffy moments. And the kicker- fluff from _both of them.  
_Little Silver isn't completely alone, is he? ;D**

**Things get a bit more serious again in the next chapter.  
**

**POLL TIME!  
Thanks for voting! And it looks like "Beneath the Veneer" has won out!  
I'm super excited about it, and I'm already doing medieval research and making a character sheet along with details on how to make the transition.  
To those who haven't read my blurb about this planned story, it's the HG/SS storyline, but in a medieval setting.  
On a semi-related note, did you know that in the middle ages, pockets weren't invented yet? So Pokemon (Pocket Monsters) is a nonsensical name to use. They'll be called Monsters, or Mons in my story, along with a few other nifty little changes.  
Another semi-related note. NEW POLL! What should Silver's last name be in this upcoming story? Please vote!**

**For those who voted otherwise, I'll probably make a Ferrishwheelshipping story sometime soon, but it won't be my main focus. And I'll try to put up another Darkrai's Redemption chapter. I've fallen woefully behind on it. :/  
**

**Thanks for reading! And once more, thanks for your support over the past year! ^^**

**See ya! ~Meta-Akira  
**


	22. Ripple

***rushes in* Okay, okay. Akira here, for the first time in almost two months! And I am very- stress the _very_- sorry!  
You would not believe the hectic craziness that has been plaguing me these past two months. And especially the past two weeks.  
Since I don't feel up to a complete explanation, I'll give you a summary: schoolwork, work, Tae Kwon Do, parents leaving on a trip to Poland, me having to travel back and forth from home to college to TKD to work on a bike, juggling everything as I also take care of my elderly blind dog, getting very sick with either bronchitis or strep throat (I never found out which, I had symptoms of both), my nineteenth birthday on the eleventh of October, my parents getting back, me taking a Tae Kwon Do Test, and catching up with a week's worth of sleep and schoolwork.**

**So I hope you all are feeling merciful towards me. I'm updating _all_ my long-term stories within a week from now, God-willing. Yes, even Darkrai's Redemption.**

**Thanks to all my reviewers: Kaiyojin Kobayashi, The Fwee, MarlinMarlen, AwesomeWolfLover, splitheart1120, Emeraldshard, Sapphiet, MarHeavenAngel, XJessicaLeighX18, Miyuku-Chan, Sparks101, Gaaraxluvr, Senna-X3, boby137, Spaztastic32, and mel0215**

**I don't own the characters of HG SS.**

**As always, read, enjoy, and review!**

**(~)**

Silver sighed, going over possible plans in his head for what must have been the fifteenth time.

But that was much easier said than done. First, neither of them had any experience in Cerulean Cave. Which meant that neither of them knew the ins and outs, and where there were dead ends. And since so few trainers were even allowed, almost no one knew what lay inside. For all they knew, the damned cave could extend for miles in every direction. And Silver really didn't feel like spelunking for several days in unknown territory, constantly having to glance over his shoulder for the elusive Legendary or RP's anonymous henchmen.

The only fact they knew for sure was that it held some powerful Pokémon and it was _dark._ Lyra would have to keep Votum on her team, and he was far from being on par with the rest of her team. Which led to the third problem.

He had no freaking idea what kind of Legendary it was. He had no clue how powerful it was, only that it was strong enough to collapse the cave if it really, really wanted to. Which meant that it would be best if Lyra's and his teams would have to be at maximum strength.

_Let's face it, we're practically flying blind. This is something we can't really prepare for._

In aggravation, he tangled his fingers through his hair, shifting slightly on the metal bench.

_How did I land myself in this mess? What would have happened if I hadn't been in Ilex when Celebi appeared?_

…_Lyra would be even more traumatized and scared than she is now. Who knows if she'd even be alive?_

He grumbled under his breath, cursing himself for even briefly dwelling on the possibility that this could have been someone else's problem, not his. Yeah, right. As if he'd even trust anyone else to keep her safe.

Why was that, though?

He sighed, resting his chin against his hand as he gazed at the enormous swimming pool, Absol quietly napping near his feet. He wouldn't be surprised if that pool could house a whole school of Gyarados. For now, multiple Water Pokémon of much smaller sizes were swimming about. Well, those as well as Garnet, Fang, and Votum. However, they hardly garnered as much attention as the sapphire Suicune who stood atop the liquid surface as if it were a sheet of glass. The creature's paws didn't even ruffle the water with ripples.

Lyra, hat, shoes, and stockings left at the poolside and hair let out of its usual restraints, sat sidesaddle on Suicune's back, her toes just skimming the pool water. She looked much more at ease than she had earlier, stroking the elegant Pokémon's neck beneath the flowing incorporeal shroud of mist flowing from her back.

"So spill," a sharp voice said behind him. He didn't need to look around to know that the Gym Leader was talking to him. Misty, who was his age, give or take a year, was in her swimsuit as usual, feet bare and her vivid short orange hair soaked and dripping. "What's been going on?"

He sighed, sorting through what would and wouldn't be acceptable to tell the Gym Leader.

"What do you want to know?" he asked wearily, seeing that Lyra couldn't hear their conversation over the splashes of the Seaking and Starmie that kept leaping out of the water.

"Well, first tell me why you practically stormed my gym with an agoraphobic Lyra in tow, demanding that I close the whole place for the rest of the day and to bring out Suicune," she said, as if it were obvious. "I mean, what the hell happened?"

Silver sighed yet again and began a launch into what all had happened since they had arrived at Cerulean City.

x~x~x~x~x

They had passed the building that marked the outskirts of Cerulean City. The buildings towered ahead, though they were much smaller than those of Goldenrod or Saffron. It really didn't take long for him to start noticing differences in Lyra's demeanor. As they started to walk amongst small crowds bustling back and forth, she'd abruptly stiffened, eyes cast towards the ground. Things only increased when someone accidentally bumped into her. She jumped, severely startled, and huddled closer to Silver, not noticing the hurried apologies from the man who appeared to be running late. Absol glared at the man, who had nearly stepped on his paw as he passed, and trotted close to Lyra's side.

After a while of this, Silver had had enough. He gripped her shoulders, and began to steer her away from the main street. It took a while, since he didn't have the streets of Cerulean memorized as much as he did with spots he visited more often on the weekends, but eventually, with the help of the Disaster Pokémon, he got them to the front doors of the gym.

Without even taking his hands off Lyra's shoulders, he had nearly shouted at the Gym Attendant standing near the entrance to get the Gym Leader to call off any challengers, that it was urgent, and the Champion needed to see her as soon as possible. With a glare from the menacing red head that could bore through stone, the man had hurried off to fulfill his orders.

Within minutes, he returned with Misty, followed by a scruffy boy around twelve clasping a tired Raticate around its middle. Once she saw Silver and Lyra standing there, she ushered the youth out the doors, telling him that they could finish their match another time and to train up for the occasion. The boy had looked like he was about to protest, but his jaw hung slack when he recognized Lyra. Without a word, he walked through the doors, staring over his shoulder at the Champion until Silver's swift, protective glare sent him rushing off.

"Lyra, what's going on?" Misty asked, hands on her hips, glancing at the two as well as Absol. "Not that the kid seemed exceedingly promising, but I was in the middle of a battle."

Lyra's eyes were downcast, and she seemed slightly out of it, so Silver decided to respond for her.

"We'd appreciate it if we could talk to you in private," he said, briefly glancing at the attendant.

Misty understood after a moment. "Go on and take the rest of the day off," she addressed the man. With a slightly confused nod, he had left the gym as well.

"Now, what's going on?" she asked, wanting some clarification.

"I need you to lock up," Silver responded again. "And bring out Suicune. It's important that Lyra spend some time with it for a while."

Lyra looked slightly bewildered by his request. Misty, meanwhile, looked a bit irritated that he was ordering her around.

Grimacing slightly, he lowered his voice some. "Please."

The anger in her eyes calmed a bit. "Fine, then. But I don't like being kept in the dark!"

x~x~x~x~x

"Well, that still doesn't explain everything," Misty said bluntly after Silver described their trip through Cerulean. "I could see from her eyes that something's up. And from what I know about Lyra, few things can shake her like whatever has happened has. Then there are those bandages covering her arms."

Silver clenched his jaw, mentally cursing the Gym Leader's observations.

"She's been under a lot of stress," he said, trying to sum up everything while still keeping things a secret. "Since she's the Champion, she feels obligated to try to carry the world on her shoulders. She's been trying to do everything by herself, and she refuses to rely on anyone else. It's really been getting to her," he ended with a sigh.

"And the bandages?"

He was silent for a bit, trying to figure out a way to explain that wouldn't attract the orange-haired-girl's suspicion. "A bad mishap that went down when we were training in Ice Path. We both lost our focus, and she ended up having to take the consequences," he mumbled, bitter regret in his voice.

"Hm. It sounds like there are secrets you're keeping," she said, looking at him with narrowed eyes.

"They're not mine to tell," he said, glaring back at her, voice deadly.

A few seconds went by before she shrugged and retracted her wary gaze. She shrugged. "I guess I'll have to honor that, then. But don't get mad at me, I'm just trying to help."

She was about to head back to the pool.

"One more thing," Silver said, his eyes now drawn back onto Lyra- who had begun to smile slightly. "We came here about Cerulean Cave. Has anything been going on recently that's been suspicious at all?"

Absol's eyes opened, the conversation finally catching his interest.

Misty's expression was a bit surprised. "No, not really. I can't keep tabs on it all the time, but I haven't gotten any reports about it. But if there is anything, I'll be sure to let Lyra know about it."

Silver merely nodded. Lyra began to laugh a bit at the antics of a particular Psyduck that seemed to have fallen in and was having difficulties swimming.

"Ugh, I swear, no matter how many times I try to teach him," the Gym leader muttered exasperatedly under her breath. Her attention was averted by a sigh. Looking over at the scarlet-haired boy, she noticed some relief in his eyes, and the tiniest smile on his face.

"Y'know," she said, with a knowing smirk, glancing between Lyra and Silver. "Despite what you said earlier, I think she _has_ found someone to rely on."

Without waiting for a reply, she headed back to the pool, leaving Silver to his befuddled thoughts.

A couple of hours later found Lyra much more cheerful than before. Before they left, she gave Suicune a fond kiss on the top of her sleek muzzle.

"Don't forget, Lyra! Wednesday mornings!" Misty said enthusiastically as they were heading for the door, holding up one hand to her ear as if it were a phone. "I'd love to see your Slowking in battle sometime!"

"I'll have to get him trained up some, first," Lyra said, smiling quite a bit wider now. "Thanks for everything, Misty. Sorry for any inconvenience."

"Nah, don't worry about it," she said, waving it off. "It was a good chance for me to have some fun with the Pokémon, and it's always great to be able to let Suicune out for a while. And if you find anything bizarre about Cerulean Cave, gimme a call. I'll gladly bring back up if you find anyone shady!"

Lyra paused, but she continued to smile. "Thank you, Misty. I'll see you later."

o0O0o0O0o

From there they had made their way north, towards Nugget Bridge. From there, it would only be a quick hop, skip, and a jump to the bank that jutted out in front of the entrance to Cerulean Cave.

The city noises faded away as they walked, and soon the quiet sound of grass beneath their feet was replaced with dull thuds of wooden planks. The bridge, painted a bright, cheerful yellow, extended out over the blue water. The sun was on the decline, bathing it all in an orange light. Silver, however, paid little attention to it as he drew out Crobat's capsule.

"Absol will have to ride with you on Fang," he stated, gazing across the waters towards the cliff's edge, where the gaping black entrance stuck out like a sore thumb.

"Of course. But… could we wait… just a minute?" Lyra asked quietly, as if she had something on her mind.

He turned to see her looking at him strangely. Interpreting her hesitation as fear, he tried to be… reassuring. Not that he had a whole lot of experience, but he'd try.

"If you're worried about it, we don't have to go right away," he said with a shrug. "Or if you really are freaked, I could go in first-"

"No, that's not it," she said, shifting slightly.

Silver frowned, not sure what she was referring to. "Well, then what is it?"

Lyra glanced up at him, as if uncertain of what he would do. Then she closed the distance between them, and hugged him. However, instead of wrapping her arms around his back like she usually would, she encircled his neck and rested her head on his shoulder.

Silver froze completely. It was as if he had been struck by his Magneton's Thunder Wave or Discharge. His heart's stuttering hammered on his eardrums, and his arms stuck straight out awkwardly, as he seemed to have no ability to move them.

Dammit, even a regular hug would have set him off, why was she hugging him like _this?_ It was much different than the normal, friendly hug she'd always given him before now. With her hair right beside his face, he could smell a mix of shampoo and chlorine. A slew of thoughts and half-baked questions jostled for attention in his head, and he couldn't think straight.

"Thank you, Silver," she murmured into his shoulder. "Thank you for taking me to see Suicune. It really, really helped. It was so thoughtful of you, and it got me to calm down."

Finally, his fried brain managed to kick back into gear and overruled the moronic, panicked part of him that wanted to push her away and move on. Instead, he managed to regain control over his arms- though it bizarrely felt as though someone else was in control- and cautiously hugged her back. After a moment or so, his grip strengthened a bit so that she felt that protective aura that she had felt back at the hospital.

She smiled into his shoulder, worry banished from her mind for the time being.

Silver, meanwhile, wasn't quite sure what was happening. He was strangely calm, despite the ruckus his heartbeat was making, and his mind was, for the moment, blank of all the fragmented protestations that had plagued him only half a minute ago. It was like something was growing in him, managing to sweep aside all the doubts and questions, and leaving him only with a unique feeling. Much like how he'd felt that one night in the hospital while Lyra was receiving Aromatherapy treatment, only magnified. And without the maelstrom of confusing thoughts pulling him down, for once he didn't feel like he was drowning.

After several minutes, Lyra moved in his grasp. That slight motion broke the spell, and he withdrew from the hug, already starting to feel the onslaught of humiliation from the deed. He could just feel the awkward hanging heavily around them.

"Um, so…" Lyra broke the silence, not meeting his gaze. "Should we go and check things out?"

Silver nodded mutely, staring at Absol, who was looking back at him in a very deadpan manner.

Crobat's pokeball still in hand, he let the four-winged creature out into the late afternoon air. He pulled himself onto the bat's awaiting back as Lyra released Fang, who jumped off the bridge and into the water. Lyra carefully sat herself on the safety rail and slid off, falling about five feet before landing safely on Fang's back.

"Sol," the Disaster Pokémon gracefully leaped down onto the reptile's back next to her.

"R-Ready, Silver?"

"Hn, yeah…"

With that they set off. Him on his Crobat and her on her Feraligatr. Quite a few things were rushing through his head now that the moment was over. One in particular was quite prominent.

_This definitely isn't heatstroke._

o0O0o0O0o

They stood next to the opening of the cave, looking in. Not that they could see much. In most caves, there were cracks or gaps in the ceiling that allowed light to squeeze through and at least partially illuminate them. But this one was complete darkness. Silver couldn't help but feel uneasy as he saw darkness that thick that ate up the light that fell down the descending entrance. Even Dark Cave, for all it's obvious naming, seemed quite bright in comparison.

Lyra couldn't help but shiver slightly.

The only thing that either took hope in was the fact that Absol, despite being alert, looked perfectly calm. He wouldn't be so relaxed if RP was already in there, would he? Still, Silver was reluctant to just rush right into Cerulean Cave.

"I have an idea," Lyra suddenly spoke up, reaching for another pokeball. In a quick flash, Votum was released. The Slowking looked around at Silver, Lyra, and Absol before shuddering as if a cold wind had just swept over the area.

"Votum, I really need you to do something for me. I want you to see if you can sense any humans in there. You know… _Them._ Use your Psychic and try to see if you can feel them in there."

Slowking nodded confidently, though with a brief moment of apprehension. He closed his eyes, and the gem on the Shellder clamped to his head glowed faintly. He held quite still for several minutes, extending his mental power to sweep the cave.

He started to shiver again. Only slightly at first, but its intensity increased as time went on. A grimace crossed his face and his closed eyes scrunched tighter.

Silver and Lyra exchanged worried glances, though Absol still remained calm.

Votum's shoulders hunched and his hands reached up to his head. Sweat even formed on his face as the shaking grew more worrisome.

Then, as suddenly as a Raichu's Thunderbolt, he stiffened, and his eyes flew open, glowing blue. His shivering had suddenly stopped, and pure astonishment was on his face. Abruptly, his eyes closed again, and he slumped to the ground, fainted.

_That,_ Silver thought, staring wide-eyed at the unconscious Pokémon, _is a hell of a bad sign._

**(~)  
So... bets on whether or not RP is in the cave at that point? I'd love to hear your reasoning. And I promise that my next update won't take so long. :3**

**Also, new poll! On whether or not I should make a Ferriswheelshipping fanfic. It's a unique idea, as far as I can tell from what's up here on FanFiction. ;D  
**

**Fang wants all of you to review!**

**See ya! ~Meta-Akira  
**


	23. Flight

**...**

**...Hey. Akira here, and please don't hurt me. I have an explanation for why this story hasn't updated in six months. Just... hear me out?**  
**First of all, I can't apologize enough. I kept making deadlines that I couldn't keep, and I'm sorry. Here's what happened. My second semester of my sophomore year at college had just started, just after Christmas break and all. After attending classes, I realized that this was going to be my most hectic, crazy, and difficult semester thus far. I got tons of essays, fourth-hour credit projects, powerpoints, and book assignments dumped over my head. Meanwhile, my Public Test for Tae Kwon Do was approaching, and I had to host a seminar for that while juggling practice for my Public Test. Add work that sucks up all my weekend free time, and I was very, very close to a breakdown.**  
**I had no time for writing whatsoever. I resolved that I would put fanfiction aside just until I got things settled, but it was hard to find any free moments to work on my stories, and when I did I found myself completely unable to write anything decent. So, unfortunately, against my wishes, the downtime of my stories stretched months longer than I planned.**  
**Finally, after school ended in the end of April, I had free time to write. Thing was, I had fallen so out of the loop of writing that it took a good amount of time to get my creative juices flowing again**

**TL;DR: I'm very sorry. School and work clobbered me for a semester, and my brain was wrung dry. I can promise something like this won't happen again, and if I do have difficulties, I WILL let you guys know via Author's Note.  
Thank you.  
**

**Tons of appreciation go out to those of you who kept my spirits up with reviews, even when I could not contribute chapters. You guys were very supportive:  
GreenPokeGuy, Sapphiet, Sparks101, Kaiyojin Kobayashi, splitheart1120, Emeraldshard, A Zombie, Tomoshibi-chan, xStart., GlowingGreenEyes, TurquoiseShine, MarlinMarlen, Spaztastic32, Charlyatt, pisceanchic101, MudkipLover33, Marianne McMasters, and Pimped Out Toast.  
**

**Anyways, on with the story. Character development and fluff ahead, as a special gift to all of you guys. :)**

**I don't own the characters of HG SS.**  
**As always, read, enjoy, and review. ^^**

**(~)  
**

"What do you think it could have been?"

Silver raised his head from his hand, looking up from his spot on the Cerulean Center's couch to meet Lyra's gaze. She had been pacing for several minutes since they had returned to heal up Votum from whatever it was he had endured. She looked half-frantic, half-confused. He shook his head.

"Not sure. Whether it was a strong Pokémon, a Legendary, or RP's doing, you can question your Slowking when he recovers. Whichever it is, though, I have the feeling we're gonna have to get to the bottom of it ourselves," he said with a shrug.

She nodded absently, already returning to her pacing. Silver wished she would stop. The nurse had not mentioned that Votum was in a critical condition. He would be better soon, so it probably would be best if Lyra didn't wear a track in the floor.

After another agitating minute of her going at it, he frowned and rose to his feet.

She was interrupted mid-stride when a hand gently clapped onto her shoulder, halting her movements and essentially derailing her train of thought. She glanced over her shoulder at Silver, who turned her around to face him, both of his hands now positioned on her shoulders bracingly.

"Hey," he said, looking her in the eye. "Relax, okay? Votum is going to be _fine._ You might make yourself sick if you stay like this. This isn't worth getting an ulcer over, because we will get through this. Understand?"

She nodded apologetically under his gaze, her tensed shoulders slowly sagging to a more relaxed position.

"Got it," she replied tiredly. "Thanks."

The whir of an electric door sliding open drew both of the teenagers' attentions towards the back rooms. Absol emerged first, trotting gracefully, with Nurse Joy and her Chansey in tow.

Lyra squirmed slightly as she tried to stand still. The nurse's gaze met hers, and a smile graced the rose-haired woman's lips. She nodded, and Lyra sighed with a tremble of relief, allowing herself a tiny smile in return. Nurse Joy strode over, high heels clacking against the patterned linoleum floor. Silver took a step back, allowing Lyra to face Nurse Joy. He backed toward the couch, only to have Absol brush against his leg before leaping on the couch. The Disaster Pokémon sprawled across it, limbs stretched as far as they could go, claiming the whole, cushiony space as his own.

Silver glowered down at it to zero effect. It merely glanced smugly back at him.

"That was _my_ seat," the redhead growled under his breath.

The smug look intensified, and there was nothing indicating the gaunt Pokémon would move from his luxurious spot. Silver huffed and turned back to Lyra.

Nurse Joy had gently placed her hand on Lyra's shoulder, much like Silver had done to calm the brunette down.

"Lyra, your Slowking is doing marvelously," she said with her smile still in place. "He is recovering quite well, I think he was just fatigued. Sometimes that happens to a Psychic-type. He's a bit disoriented right now. A meal of Persim berries and the night spent here, and he'll be in top condition again."

Relief was evident on Lyra's face. She thanked the nurse multiple times until the woman kindly waved them off and returned to the back rooms to tend some of the other Pokémon. Chansey remained behind the front desk in case other trainers came through, requesting Pokémon check-ups.

Lyra closed her eyes, fingers clasped together. Statue-like. Silver warily touched her bandaged arm, carefully. Eyes blinking open, she glanced up at him. A wordless exchange passed between them.

"Come on," he finally said, lightly steering her towards the front desk. "Let's get a couple of rooms."

Chansey had provided them a key each, and they made their way down the hall. Silver unlocked his door and threw his bag across the room onto the bed. Lyra numbly held her key, standing in front of her door without making an attempt to open it.

Silver noticed that she wasn't moving. He turned and leaned on the wall next to his room's door, arms crossed and one foot resting against the doorframe.

"What is it?"

Lyra didn't look up. Instead, she just tightened her fist around her keys, knuckles showing white. A heavy sigh dragged itself past her lips and shaped itself into a whisper.

"_I'm so tired of this, I can hardly think straight._"

He blinked at her and pushed himself off the wall. He approached her and eased the keys out of her fist, sliding her fingers off the bits of metal. He unlocked and opened the door. He lifted her bag off her good shoulder and set it down inside the room. He made his way back to Lyra, his palm extended.

"Pokegear?"

Not even offering him a puzzled look, she pulled the device out of her pocket and placed it in his hand. He frowned at the warmth of the object- probably overheated. He put it on the nightstand and led her out of the room, closing the door. He closed his own door as they passed, Lyra following behind him without question.

As they made their way back through the lobby, Silver noticed Absol still sprawled across the couch.

"Make sure everything here doesn't all go to hell, got it?" he sarcastically called over his shoulder to the Disaster Pokémon. All he got in response was the flick of a tail.

"Lazy thing. I think he's spent too much time around my Pokémon. He's getting to be more snarky," he muttered to himself, though it pleased him when this got a slight smile from his rival. They continued on through the automatic doors into the wan light of dusk.

"Where are we going?" Lyra finally spoke up. He offered her a smile, which surprised her. His smiles weren't common, especially the past few days.

"Take out your Fearow," he said.

Deciding not to question it, she took a pokeball off her belt.

"Fia," she called as she pressed the button on the capsule. The brown bird took shape, stretching her wings and fluffing up her feathers. Silver had meanwhile released his own Crobat.

Lyra saw where he was going with this. "A battle, then?"

Silver looked caught off guard. He coughed, then shook his head.

"Actually, I hadn't even thought of that," he said, eyebrows raised. "I just find that it really helps me think more clearly when I fly with Crobat. No one will be able to spy on us at all. Maybe… who the hell knows… Maybe it will help you feel better."

Lyra stroked Fia's neck , mulling over his suggestion. Finally, she nodded, a bigger smile overcoming her face.

"That sounds fantastic. It's been too long since I've taken a ride with Fia," she replied, as her Fearow looked pleased.

The matter decided, both Pokémon lowered themselves to the ground to let their trainers position themselves on their backs. As one, the two Flying-types spread their wings, one feathered pair and two leathery pairs. They lifted off into the sky, eager to put their wings to use. Crobat, being the faster of the two, led the way upwards with gusto, stretching his fanged mouth into a grin. Fia kept up, not one to get left behind.

It was exhilarating. Silver himself was smiling in sheer enjoyment, and he heard Lyra laugh as she clutched the long neck of her bird. Crobat flitted off to the right, and Fia veered smoothly as she followed. It had been more than a week since Silver had spent any decent amount of time in the air. He could kinda see why Falkner followed his father's footsteps of being a Flying-type Gym Leader. It certainly had its appeal. It was also a _very _good thing he wasn't afraid of heights.

After the two Pokémon had had their fun of chasing each other and spiraling through the air, they slowed their pace to alternate between ascending and gliding. It was this smoother sequence that helped Silver to clear his head, usually to think about battle strategy and figure out where he and his Pokémon still had flaws to be worked on. This time, however, battle strategy was hardly top priority in his mind. Instead, his thoughts kept on getting tugged to a certain subject.

As if to spite himself, all his though processes kept leading back to Lyra.

He grimaced. Tried to feed his mind a different idea or problem to think about. He didn't want to think about it. He wanted to focus on other things.

But that's how things constantly were when he was on the ground, wasn't it?

_Focus on other things. Don't bring it up. Push it away. Ignore it. Dismiss it. Deny it._

He hated it. He couldn't stand it. He refused to let himself think about it. He forced himself to think about something else any time his thoughts started going more in-depth about _her._

Because, and God forbid he _ever_ admitted this to anyone, even his own Pokémon, he was afraid. Silver was afraid.

He was terrified at what he might find out about himself. Once he heard the truth from his own mind, there was no going back. There was no rebuilding the comforting, familiar wall of lies that he had come to rely on as a barrier between him and his real thoughts. Once he allowed himself to hear the truth, it would blast a hole through the wall and topple it.

He brushed his hair out of his face as he struggled with himself.

_How _do_ I feel about Lyra?_

His prideful side- his fearful side –just wanted to forget about it, bottle it up and lock it away like he did with his past and family history. But there was definitely part of him that really wanted to hear that truth, regardless of how it would shake the foundations of his barrier.

_Congratulations, idiot. You're making negative progress in what you were trying to accomplish._

It certainly felt like his mind was full and crowded right now, instead of being cleared out. It was frustrating to the extreme. He was going to lose focus and control this way.

"Silver!"

Lyra's voice calling to his right snapped him out of his frantic, jumbled thoughts. He looked over at her, a bit dazed.

"I need to head back down. Fia's got great eyesight, but she's not used to night flying," she explained, motioning to how the sun had dipped below the horizon and the light was fading quickly. The city below was beginning to glimmer with pinpricks of lit windows, and the faint glow of the larger Saffron City could be seen to the south. Even so, it was getting too dark for the Fearow to navigate well.

She was already beginning to descend, but Silver's mind nearly panicked. For what reason, he had no idea, but before he could make sense of it-

"Wait!"

She heard him call out, and she had Fia turn back towards him. He had a strange look on his face, like he couldn't decide how to solve something.

"Uh… You…" he sputtered gracelessly before attempting to build a more coherent statement. "C-Crobat's got excellent night vision. And he's big enough to carry the both of us for a while."

He was only partly aware that he was rambling nonsense. But if she went back, his thoughts would only end up going in circles.

"Um… Okay," she nervously responded, surprised by his offer. She shyly looked away, which was just fine with him, since he was doing the same.

"Right. So… Get Fia to fly just a bit above me and Crobat and off to the side slightly."

Lyra nodded, and coaxed her Fearow into position. Silver held up one arm to grasp her own.

"You won't let me fall, right?" the brunette joked with a chuckle.

"Never."

She blushed a bit by how much vehement sincerity he put behind that word. She carefully edged herself off of Fia and onto the larger Crobat, Silver's steady grip tight on her good arm the whole while. Finally, she was seated behind him on Crobat's back. She returned Fia to her pokeball, clipped it to her belt, then cautiously slipped her arms around Silver's stomach.

Yeah. He was going to get a _lot_ of thinking done _now_. Right.

He was just glad that the dark his red face exceptionally well. Though he really, really hoped that she couldn't feel the rapid-fire thudding coming from his chest.

This was a mistake. A bad idea. This was one of his worst ideas ever.

He needed to get away from this. He needed to escape.

But what could he do now? He was on a Crobat's back with Lyra several hundred feet off the ground.

They soared in uncomfortable (well, for him anyway) silence for a few minutes. It was Lyra who broke the silence.

"Silver?" she asked from behind his shoulder. He hummed to show he was listening. Anything to distract him from the mess inside his head.

"Do you think that it'll be over after tomorrow?"

He was quiet for a moment. Then he answered with a decisive "Yes."

"Good." Silence for a few more minutes. "Silver?"

Another hum.

"I don't want to be afraid anymore."

This caught his attention. There was fear in her voice, but it was spiked with something else. And it seemed to resonate with something in him.

"I've been thinking. And I realized that I'm so tired of it. I'm tired of being afraid."

_But…_

"I've been afraid of them for so long, and where has that gotten me?"

_Th-that …_

"It's made me paranoid and so reluctant to trust people. I'm terrified of being betrayed."

_That's exactly how I feel right now._

"I can't afford to be afraid anymore. I have to face them, no matter what."

He glanced over his shoulder at her. She looked back at him, determination shining in her eyes. For once, she looked like the Lyra he knew before this whole ordeal began. Lyra, the undefeatable champion, who never backed from a challenge, who defeated Team Rocket and faced off with Lugia and Suicune. The girl who would rise up from falling down and defeat RP, instead of running, hiding, and letting someone else deal with it.

"You know, Lyra? You're the bravest person I have ever known," he murmured.

_I'm tired of being afraid._

"M-me?" Lyra sputtered, stunned. That was praise of the highest caliber coming from Silver. Not an ounce of sarcasm had been present in his voice.

"Is there anyone else named Lyra riding on Crobat with me?"

Okay, now there was a little bit of sarcasm.

"No…"

_I… I want to trust you._

And in order for there to be trust, he had to let her in on his past.

"Lyra, there's something I need to tell you."

"Yeah?"

"It's about my family."

She was silent, but he could tell that she was giving him her undivided attention.

"My father," he started, a slight tremor in his voice, "was a terrible man. He did terrible things. And he led many others to do terrible things."

"My father," he faltered and gritted his teeth. Now or never. "was the leader of Team Rocket. I-I'm the son of Giovanni."

There was silence from her side. Panic was kicking up inside of him. He feared the worst. Was she repulsed? Angry?

"W-Well, say something, why don't you?" he snapped.

A simple sigh. That was… unexpected. Her arms tightened around his stomach so that it was more of a hug than a grip. She leaned forward, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Actually… I've known for a while, Silver."

_Wait… What…_

"Wait… What?" He looked wildly over his shoulder at her, disbelief etched all over his face, only to come face-to-face with her hat. She still had her head down on his shoulder. "How could you have known?"

"It's a long and strange story that I promise I'll tell another time," she responded. "But I've known for several months."

"Y-you… I… Wh… Why didn't you _say something?_"

"I didn't want to bring it up and upset you. I wanted you to tell me about it yourself, whenever you felt comfortable," she replied softly.

Silver was silent for a few moments. He was reluctant to ask, but he had to.

"And did it… change the way you thought about me?"

There was a pause from her side. When she spoke, it seemed like she was wording her sentence carefully, but with complete sincerity.

"I was shocked when I found out. And just a little afraid," she said. His back stiffened. "I wasn't expecting it, for sure. You look nothing like him, you know. But I could see that you were trying your best to be the opposite of him. You have become a very good person, despite who your father was. So, in a way, yes and no. I have come to respect you a lot more when it comes to the decisions you've made."

The redhead exhaled slowly, hardly aware that he'd been holding his breath.

"Thank you… for your honesty, Lyra."

"Hm," she hugged him a little tighter, smiling into his shoulder. "No, I think that I should thank you for yours."

Silence reigned again, except for the wind that blew past their airborne frames. This time, though, it was significantly more comfortable.

_I need to stop being afraid. _

He finally relaxed, and stopped resisting. He let his mind roam, no longer keeping it under such tight, paranoid restrictions. He wanted to figure out how he really felt.

He thought of his many memories of her from his journey before she became Champion, from the day she walked out of Elm's lab with a tiny blue Totodile in tow to their final battle before her mighty run through the Pokémon League. How battling her, seeing her interact with her Pokémon eventually changed his outlook. How, even before her Championship, their rivalry had transcended into a close friendship.

His mind revved past their brief meeting in Kanto and their fight with Lance and Clair- only pausing briefly to note how he had felt threatened by Lance hugging Lyra –and came to a halt on his more recent memories of the past week or so. He'd felt shattered when he had witnessed her tombstone in the future. A devastation that could not be compared. Even if his Pokémon were to die, he wasn't sure if it would hurt as much. The hope that had been restored to him when he had seen her after his time-space excursion had brought so much relief that it had almost been a shock.

And while she had been afraid, vulnerable, and hurt, he had stepped up to protect her, and he had stuck by her side every painful step of the way. His number one priority was to make sure she was safe and, God-willing, smiling.

Damn, he loved it when she smiled.

He… loved it.

_Love._

His eyes widened slightly as his face grew warm. There was a strong rush of affection that he never allowed himself to feel before. And it all centered around the subject of his thoughts.

"I am the biggest idiot in the world," he muttered under his breath, completely stunned.

Lyra shifted a bit behind him. "Did you say something, Silver?"

"It's… It's nothing," he answered, directing Crobat into a gentle descent in the direction of the Pokémon Center. She didn't protest, she just set her head on his shoulder again.

o0O0o0O0o

A few feet from the ground, Crobat stopped his decent, hovering in place by quickly flapping both pairs of wings. Silver turned and slid off the purple bat's back. He turned and held up both of his arms, offering to help Lyra down. She blinked down at him, surprised by the unexpected courtesy. She carefully maneuvered herself off of Crobat, and Silver caught her as she came down, his heart running rapidly from their close proximity. His arms lingered around her for just a moment longer than necessary, but he forced himself to let go and back off, returning his Crobat. Lyra remained where she was, hardly an arm's length away.

"Thank you…" she whispered, looking up to meet his mercury eyes. "That flight was fantastic. I… really enjoyed it. And," her voice got a bit stronger, more assured, "you helped me get my courage back. You've been so great lately. Thank you."

She gave him a brief hug, hesitating for a flitting moment before giving him a quick peck on the cheek. It couldn't have lasted more than half a second, before she had left, hurriedly making her way into the Center toward her room.

Silver remained outside, his brain feeling a bit frozen. Finally, he moved, staring in the direction of the Pokémon Center doors, but she was already out of sight. His face felt warm as he slowly treaded towards his own room, disregarding the slumbering Disaster Pokémon. He unlocked his door, not bothering to turn on the light, his movements feeling automatic. He shoved his bag off his bed and collapsed on the mattress.

He was a little proud of himself that he didn't do the cliché, sissy response of touching his cheek. He refused, point-blank to react that way. At least he'd kept some of his own dignity after his revelation. But that didn't stop him from imagining her kissing his cheek again. That pride-filled part of him wanted to punch his lights out, filled with disgust. The rest of him felt a pang of elation.

He rolled over on the bed, not bothering to get changed.

_What the hell have I gotten myself into?_

"I… I love her?" he stammered quietly into the darkness, as if asking for an answer.

After thinking about his actions around her the past week, at least –who knew how long this had built up –he was quite sure.

_But… I can't tell Lyra that I… I-I just can't tell her…_

_Yet._

**(~)**_  
_

**Forgive me now?  
**

**See ya! ~Meta-Akira  
**


	24. (Renovations are a go!)

Hey everyone. Akira here.

Okay, as you can see, some much needed chapter reworking is now underway. Chapter 1 has been tweaked, mistakes removed and some iffy sentences and paragraphs ironed out. Some of the other earlier chapters will follow suit, and then this story can finally grow to see its end.

I must thank you all with bearing with me. Hopefully I can get all the renovations on the chapters done within the next couple of weeks and, who knows? I may be able to bring you guys a much-deserved update soon after. :D

You won't believe how excited and relieved I am to finally be working on this story again.

Many thanks for your encouraging words!

~Meta-Akira


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